Category Archives: Golf Course Tours

A Then & Now photo tour of the always exciting and ever-changing Augusta National Golf Club

Bobby Jones set out, with his beloved Old Course as inspiration, to create the ideal golf course at Augusta. His collaborative partnership included Dr. Alister MacKenzie, Clifford Roberts, Marion Hollins and others—a meeting of the minds with a singular focus. In spite of the early challenges associated with stabilizing the club, the group certainly achieved the objective of designing and building a golf course worthy of acclaim. Dr. MacKenzie gave his assessment of their creation in an essay that was included in the program for the First Annual Invitation Tournament held in March of 1934:

“If, as I firmly believe, the Augusta National becomes the World’s Wonder Inland Golf Course, this will be due to the original ideas that were contributed by Bob Jones.

What is the “ideal” course? Bob and I found ourselves in complete accord on these essentials:

A really great course must be pleasurable to the greatest possible number.

It must require strategy as well as skill, otherwise it cannot be enduringly interesting.

It must give the average player a fair chance and at the same time require the utmost from the expert who tries for sub-par scores.

All natural beauty should be preserved, natural hazards should be utilized, and a minimum of artificiality introduced.

I want to say quite frankly that if our finished work is favorably received, it will be in part due to the excellent material at our disposal. We had plenty of land, towering pine trees, beautiful shrubbery, streams of water, a mildly rolling terrain of great variety, a rich soil for growing good fairway grass and a naturally beautiful setting from an architectural standpoint.

The property was originally settled by a Belgian Baron by the name of Berckmans. He was an ardent horticulturist and in this property he indulged his hobby to the limit of his resources. I don’t suppose the old Baron suspected that golf would someday become a popular sport in America and his property used by the world’s greatest player for a golf course. But if Bob’s great grandfather had foretold to the Baron what was to occur, the Baron could not possibly, in my opinion, have devised a beautification program that would today better serve our purposes.

There are azaleas in abundance and a great variety of small plants, shrubbery and hedges, and a real cork tree. There are also scores of camellia bushes, that are now really trees—in size. But the most impressive of all is the ancient double row of Magnolia trees (said to be the finest in the South) that will border the driveway entrance into this ‘Golfer’s Paradise’.

Now to get back to our golf course. Doubt may be expressed as to the possibility of making a course pleasurable to everyone, but it may be pointed out that the “Old Course” at St. Andrews, Scotland, which Bob likes best of all, very nearly approaches this ideal.

It has been suggested that it was our intention at Augusta to produce copies of the most famous golf holes. Any attempt of this kind could only result in failure. It may be possible to reproduce a famous picture, but the charm of a golf hole may be dependent on a background of sand dunes, trees, or even mountains several miles away. A copy without the surroundings might create an unnatural appearance and cause a feeling of irritation, instead of charm. On the other hand, it is well to have a mental picture of the world’s outstanding holes and to use this knowledge in reproducing their finest golfing features, and perhaps even improving on them.

At Augusta we tried to produce eighteen ideal holes, not copies of classical holes but embodying their best features, with other features suggested by the nature of the terrain. We hope for accomplishments of such unique character that the holes will be looked upon as classics in themselves.

The acid test of a golf course is its abiding popularity. And here we are up against a real difficulty. Does the average golfer know what he really likes himself? When he plays well, he praises the course, but if his score is a high one the vigor of his language would put to shame a regimental sergeant major. It is usually the best holes that are condemned most vehemently by those who fail to solve their strategy. Bob Jones realizes this so strongly that when his opinion about the design of Augusta National, he said that the course would differ so markedly from others, that many of the members at first would have unpleasant things to say about the architects. A few years ago I would have agreed with Bob, but today, owing to his own teaching, the work and writings of C.B. Macdonald, Max Behr, Robert Hunter, and others, Americans appreciate real strategic golf to a greater extent than even in Scotland, the Home of Golf.

I do not believe the Augusta National will impress anyone as a long course, as although undulating it is not hilly. There are no irritating walks from greens to tees and moreover it will be so interesting and free from annoyance of searching for lost balls, that players will get the impression that it is shorter than it really is.”

The ink was barely dry on MacKenzie’s writing when changes began to be made. The course evolved, as every course does, but very few have undergone the continuous tinkering that Augusta has since that inaugural tournament that would come to be known simply as The Masters. Perry Maxwell, Robert Trent Jones, George Cobb, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Fazio have all left their marks.

Debate rages among lovers of the course and the tournament about whether the evolutionary arc of Augusta National has moved it closer to or further away from the ideal standard envisioned by its founder. Regardless of where one stands on that question, we can all agree that the roars on the back nine on those magical Sunday afternoons in April are tough to beat.

The Course Then & Now

For the second time in its history, The Masters tournament was not contested during its normal slot on the spring calendar. Thankfully, our fellow geeks took to social media to bring us a spirit-lifting look at Augusta National during these troubled times. The tour that follows is a modern collaborative effort featuring historical photos and commentary from Simon Haines (@Hainesy76) and Brian Schneider (@BSchneider126), as well as the Good Doctor himself. For recent contrast, Jon Cavalier (@LinksGems) has provided his photos and thoughts. The evolution of the course is evident, and we leave it to each geek to decide which era they love most.

In spite of our familiarity with the course from years of watching the tournament on television, those who have had the good fortune to attend as patrons are unanimous in the opinion that no video or photo can convey the feeling of being there. Obviously. Do take note, however, of the scale and movement of the land that is conveyed in Jon’s photos, taken during a recent practice round. Thinner crowds coupled with his interesting vantage points made for compelling images. Enjoy the tour!

Click on any gallery image to enlarge

HOLE #1 “Tea Olive” – 445 yards – par 4

“A drive that is long and straight, skirting a group of trees on the right will be in a favorable position for the second. It is difficult to obtain par figures from any other position.” – Dr. MacKenzie

A wide fairway welcomes the nervy opening tee shot at the Masters, but the dogleg right demands precision, and the green undulates like the ocean in a gale. There isn’t a player in the field who wouldn’t take 4-4-4-4 here.

HOLE #2 “Pink Dogwood” – 575 yards – par 5

“This is an interesting three shot hole down hill. Each shot will have to be placed with great accuracy if par figures are obtained. On the other hand, it is quite possible for a powerful and accurate player to reach the green in two shots.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The green on the par-5 second is perhaps the only one on the course that might be MORE interesting today than it was in 1934. In its early days, there was just one greenside bunker. The left-hand bunker would be added in the 1940s, followed by the back-left expansion of the green a number of years later.

A blind tee shot to a fairway sweeping left and hard downhill leaves an approach from a downhill lie to green sloping hard left-to-right. The first birdie opportunity and generally one of the easiest holes on the course.

HOLE #3 “Flowering Peach” – 350 yards – par 4

“This green is situated on an interesting natural plateau. The left hand side of the green is very narrow; whereas the right side is broad. It is easy for anyone to reach the wide portion of the green with their second shot, but difficult to reach the narrow end where the pine will usually be placed.” – Dr. MacKenzie

No. 3 has seen its share of trainwrecks as players attempt to drive the ball on to this extremely shallow, severely sloped green. Laying up can leave an awkward half-wedge and bring the enormous fairway bunkers into play.

HOLE #4 “Flowering Crabapple” – 240 yards – par 3

“This is a very similar hole to the famous Eleventh (Eden) at St. Andrews. There have been scores of attempted copies of this famous hole but there is none that has the charm and thrills of the original. Most copies are failures because of the absence of the subtle and severe slopes which create the excitement of the original hole, and also because the turf is usually so soft that any kind of a sloppy pitch will stop. Previous failures, followed by, comparatively speaking, increasing successes may have given us sufficient experience to warrant us in hoping that here at last we may have constructed a hole that will compare favorably with the original.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The original 13th and 14th Holes at Augusta National (now the 4th and 5th) were both modeled after great holes from The Old Course, as was the spirit of the course itself. The par-3 13th was a loose replica of the famed Eden 11th and the 14th, a version of the infamous Road Hole 17th.

The first par-3 of the round is a monster considered by some to be the toughest par on the course. The guarded green is sloped right-to-left and back-to-front. No problem if you’ve got a 240yd high cut in your bag.

HOLE #5 “Magnolia” – 495 yards – par 4

“This will be a similar type of hole to the famous 17th at St Andrews. A group of trees will form the corner of the dogleg instead of the station masters garden and the green itself will be situated on a similar plateau to its prototype.” – Dr. MacKenzie

Lengthened by 40 yards before last year’s tournament, this hole now demands a 300 yard carry to clear the enormous fairway bunkers inside the dogleg. The green is eye-poppingly sloped in front, making three-putts common here.

HOLE #6 “Juniper” – 188 yards – par 3

“This will be similar to the Redan at North Berwick but here owing to its extreme visibility, lie of the land and beauty of the surroundings, we have no doubt that we will be able to construct a much more attractive hole than the original.” – Dr. MacKenzie

A personal favorite and a terrific par-3, Juniper plays downhill over hillside spectators to an incredible green protected by a huge bunker. Seeing the back right pin position in person for the first time is a true revelation.

HOLE #7 “Pampas” – 450 yards – par 4

“This hole is similar in character to the Eighteenth Hole at St. Andrews, Scotland. There is a deep hollow at the front of the green which it is necessary to attack at the correct angle for par figures to be obtained. At this hole it will also be desirable to play a run-up shot as it will be exceedingly difficult to retain a pitch in the usual position of the flag.” – Dr. MacKenzie

Substantial changes have turned one of the easier holes on the course into one of the toughest, as one of the narrowest fairways on the course leads to one of the shallowest greens, which must often approached from a downhill lie.

HOLE #8 “Yellow Jasmine” – 570 yards – par 5

“This is a three shot hole uphill. The green is in a punchbowl surrounded by large hillocks nine to twelve feet high. It is completely visible for the third shot and a player who is sufficiently long to get up in two will be able to define the position of the green owing to the size of the surrounding hillock. It may be compared to the Seventeenth Green at Muirfield (Edinburg, Scotland).” – Dr. MacKenzie

Clifford Roberts was a fan of the 8th green but was bothered by the way the surrounding mounds inhibited spectator viewing. In the late 1950s, he had them removed while retaining the putting surface itself… sort of. Jones hated the change so the green was quickly rebuilt, with flanking bunkers replacing the lost mounds. With the help of Byron Nelson, the mounding would be restored in the late 1970s, giving us the 8th green complex we know today.

The second of four exceptional three-shotters, the 8th plays uphill and blind into an elongated green bowled in by enormous mounds (restored by Byron Nelson in 1979). Any miss left is stone dead. A great risk/reward hole.

HOLE #9 “Carolina Cherry” – 460 yards – par 4

“This is a hole of the Cape type played slightly downhill. A long straight drive to the right will give an easy second to the green.” – Dr. MacKenzie

Players quickly figured out that the best line into the 9th was often from the 1st fairway… reminiscent of various holes at St Andrews. To force players to approach the hole “properly”, Roberts had Perry Maxwell rebuild the green (twice) and add bunkers in the face of the hill.

The tee shot here is to a blind landing area, but Carolina Cherry is all about the approach, which is steeply uphill from a downhill lie, and the green, which slopes sharply from back-to-front. The back-nine awaits.

HOLE #10 “Camelia” – 495 yards – par 4

“This is a comparatively easy down-hill hole. A long drive over hillocks on the right will land on a plateau from which an iron shot can be played to the opening of a large nature-made punch bowl green. The driver that pulls his shot to the left of the fairway is called upon to play a difficult second shot over a large spectacular bunker, with small chance of getting near the pin. This hole embodies the most attractive features of the Thirteenth hole at Cypress Point, California, and the Fourth at Alwoodly, one of the best of the British inland links.” – Dr. MacKenzie

Today’s 10th Hole is obviously VERY different than what’s shown here as the 1st Hole. Jones and Roberts hired Perry Maxwell to relocate the green to its current location in the summer of 1937. Moving the green back 60 yards turned Mackenzie’s sprawling greenside bunker into the beautiful but oddly-situated fairway bunker that we find today.

And so it begins – the most exciting back nine in major championship golf. As a first timer, I was mesmerized at the remarkable length and steepness of the downhill 10th. Historically, this is the toughest hole on the course.

HOLE #11 “White Dogwood” – 5050 yards – par 4

“The green is situated in the bend of a stream. The approach has a marked tilt upwards from left to right, so that the further and more accurately a drive is placed to the left the easier the second shot becomes. This should always be a quite fascinating hole. I don’t know another quite like it.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The fairly sharp dogleg of MacKenzie’s original 11th has been straightened and lengthened considerably over the years. Extensive tree planting has also turned a wonderfully strategic tee shot into one of the tightest and toughest on the course. The 11th green has been rebuilt and raised numerous times, and the current pond was once a little bend in Rae’s creek that guarded the front-left of the green.

White Dogwood begins with one of the day’s toughest tee shots down through a narrow chute of trees and culminates with an approach into a green guarded by a pond left, big mounds front a slope right and Rae’s Creek long. In the April 21, 1958 issue of Sports Illustrated, Herbert Warren Wind coined the phrase “Amen Corner” to describe the 11th green, 12th hole and 13th tee. The evocative name stuck immediately.

HOLE #12 “Golden Bell” – 155 yards – par 3

“This is an interesting pitch shot to a long narrow green immediately over a stream. The bold player will go for the pin on the right, while the less ambitious will steer for the larger landing space on the left side of the green. There is a steep sandy bank covered with beautiful trees beyond the green.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The par-3 12th is a very simple hole (though certainly not easy), which has likely helped it retain its original character as much as any hole at Augusta, but it’s almost hard to imagine that it once played as the 3rd considering the massive role it plays in the event each year.

Perhaps the most famed par-3 in golf, Golden Bell is just 150-some yards through a mysterious and beguiling wind to an angled, kidney-shaped green across Rae’s Creek. Has any hole produced more major championship drama?

HOLE #13 “Azalea” – 510 yards – par 5

“This is played along the course of a brook with the final shot finishing to a green over the stream with a background of a hill slope covered with pine trees. The hole has some of the best golfing features of the Seventeenth hole at Cypress Point, California, and the ideal hole depicted in C.B. Macdonald’s book.” – Alister Mackenzie

Augusta’s great 13th (former 4th) is the second hole for which MacKenzie cited other holes that influenced its creation. This is the “ideal hole” mentioned, a design he himself created for a competition in Country Life magazine related to Macdonald’s Lido project.

Probably the best par-4-and-a-half in the world, and definitely the prettiest. The club’s acquisition of land from neighboring Augusta Country Club could see this hole lengthened by as much as 60 yards. I wouldn’t change a thing.

HOLE #14 “Chinese Fir” – 440 yards – par 4

“This hole embodies some of the features of the Sixth Hole at St. Andrews, Scotland. A long drive skirting or played over a bunker on the right will give a visible shot to the green. From the left the green is semi-blind and moreover a run up approach will be required over a succession of hillocks and hollows.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The 14th green complex is an absolute marvel, surely among the most interesting that we get to see on TV. If only the pros hit longer clubs into this green rather than short irons—here are few shots more satisfying to watch than a running ball that climbs onto the top shelf.

Since 1952, the dogleg-left 14th is the only hole at Augusta National without a single bunker. The defense here is the tricky green, which features a false front, beyond which it runs away to the back and hard left-to-right.

HOLE #15 “Firethorn” – 530 yards – par 5

“This is a three shot hole to most golfers. It is not only an interesting three shot hole, as one will be maneuvering for position from the tee shot onwards, but also a magnificent two shot hole, as a skillful and courageous player will, aided by a large hillock to the right, be able to pull his second around the green. A pond in front of the green provides the penalty for the long player who fails to make a perfect second shot.” – Dr. MacKenzie

The second of two incredible par-4-and-a-half holes on the back side and the site of Gene Sarazen’s Shot Heard Round The World in 1935: a 4-wood for double eagle. A tremendously exciting hole for the patrons and players alike.

HOLE #16 “Redbud” – 170 yards – par 3

“This is a somewhat similar hole over a stream to the best hole (seventh) at Stoke Poges, England. It is probably a better hole than the one at Stoke Poges as the green is more visible and the background more attractive.” – Dr. MacKenzie

In the late 1940s, Robert Trent Jones dammed up the creek on what’s now the 16th, shifting the tees and flipping the green to the other side of the water. While it would have been fantastic to have played MacKenzie’s original hole, the changes made by Trent Jones in creating the current 16th certainly added variety to the set of one-shotters.

“IN YOUR LIFE have you seen anything like that?” Verne Lundquist’s iconic call of Tiger Woods’ amazing chip-in on Sunday at the 2005 Masters is still the first thing I think of when I see the 16th at ANGC. And it always will be.

HOLE #17 “Nandina” – 440 yards – par 4

“The construction of this green is somewhat similar to the famous Fourteenth at St. Andrews (reversed). It will be necessary to attack the green from the right and it will be essential to play a run-up shot if par figures are desired. We hope to make the turf of such a character that an indifferent pitch will not stop on the green. Until players have learned to play the desired shot this will undoubtedly be one of the most fiercely criticised holes.” – Dr. MacKenzie

This green at Augusta was the opposite of the 14th at St Andrews, with the strong contour on the left rather than the right. Maxwell subsequently added the bunkers to the mound.

The 17th was best known for the Eisenhower Tree, a giant loblolly pine 210yds from the tee that the 34th President wanted cut down. He belatedly got his wish courtesy of Mother Nature when a 2014 ice storm brought it down.

HOLE #18 “Holly” – 465 yards – par 4

“The tee shot is played over a valley and a bank running diagonally from left to right. The longer the drive to the right the easier the second shot, as the approach to the green is bunkered heavily on the left.” – Dr. MacKenzie

Note the central fairway bunker and how the green extends well down the hill alongside the left greenside bunker. The original green on what’s now the finishing hole was massive compared to today’s version.

The narrow chute demands a straight shot from this pressure-packed tee. The fairway bunkers up the left side are enormous and deep. The green is severe and a short-side is an automatic bogey. Otherwise, an easy finishing hole.

Two things can be counted on with relative certainty: First, the golf course at Augusta National Golf Club will continue to evolve, and second, it will produce exciting championships for golf geeks and casual fans alike every year.

For even more on Augusta National and The Masters, we highly recommend:

Revisiting the Sweetens Cove story and a 2016 conversation with architect Rob Collins of King-Collins Golf Course Design

Election Day in 2016 now seems like a lifetime ago. After watching election returns that night from an Atlanta hotel, I hit the road early the next morning to make a much anticipated jaunt to Sweetens Cove. Fellow geeks had been lauding the course—the architecture of Rob Collins and Tad King as well as the unique vibe—and my lucky day had finally arrived. What I found, making loops with Rob and Patrick Boyd, was a confirmation of the special character of Sweetens Cove, and the men who had devoted themselves to its creation and survival. As a follow-up, Rob shared his story and that of the course in the interview and tour below.

Much has changed in the world and in South Pittsburg, TN since that day. Dylan Dethier’s New York Times article in August, 2017, among other media coverage, brought national attention to Sweetens Cove, and with it, an influx of pilgrims seeking their own awakening. The vast majority have enthusiastically reported that the course delivered a fun and creative version of the game that fanned the flames of their passion for golf.

Among those converts were two guys named Peyton and Andy, who have become partners in the venture, setting it on a path to an even more exciting next phase. King-Collins Golf Course Design has also seen a change in its fortunes. After a false start at The Buck Club, the duo have created another 9-holer in NY, and are hard at work making their own modern statement on the Nebraska sandhills. New projects continue to fill their pipeline.

While Sweetens Cove certainly has a cult following, to write off its success as merely a novelty fueled by golf-Twitter hipsters is to breeze over its depth. Those who have followed Rob’s work, or who have been lucky enough to meet him, know that he is not just talented. He is authentically good. Sweetens Cove is an eclectic blend of strategic, heroic and penal design, with a heaping helping of visual flare on top. It is a course that could be played every day without a hint of repetitiveness. What makes it truly great though is not only what it is, but the delta between what it was and what it has become. A flat, lifeless mud-pit of a course has been transformed into a golf geeks’ amusement park. Look beneath the surface, and one finds the powerful parallels between the making of the Sweetens Cove, and the hard-fought birth of its architect’s career.

It is worth revisiting Rob’s story and that of the course at this point. The attendant tour contrasts the before, during and after perspectives on each hole. The designers words are complemented by a mix of photography from Jon Cavalier (@linksgems), Rob (@KingCollinsGolf) and me, illustrating the many moods of Sweetens Cove. The variety of colors and contrasts are among the many ingredients that keep a steady stream of devotees coming back for more.

One of the Good Guys

The interview that follows is presented with minimal modification to Rob’s answers from November, 2016. His answers still demonstrate his thoughtfulness and passion.

How did you get introduced to golf?

I played golf for the first time as an 11 year old with my Dad. At that time in my life, we only played a few times a year. It was nothing more than a minor hobby in my early years.

When did you know that the game had a hold on you?

I decided to try out for my high school team my senior year. At the time, I was an absolutely horrible player, but I enjoyed the sport and I thought I might have a shot at making the team. As it turned out, our team was so bad that I was able to squeeze in at the six spot. Playing on a more regular schedule helped build my interest in the game. As I started to see some marginal improvement, I began to like it more and more.

After my freshman year in college, I was invited to go on a trip to St. Andrews. By that time, I was really enjoying the game, and was primed to fall in love with it. Our loops on the Old & New Courses, along with watching the first three rounds of the Open Championship at Turnberry, solidified my addiction to the game.

How did you get into the business?

I started in the graduate landscape architecture program at Mississippi State in 2002 with the intention of using that degree to help me get into the field of course architecture. In 2004, I was hired by Rick Robbins as an intern, an opportunity for which I will be forever grateful. I learned a great deal from Rick and his team, and I was fortunate to transition that into a design coordinator role with Gary Player Design.

Who is your favorite Golden Age architect, and why?

That is a very difficult question, but I think I would have to go with MacKenzie. His writings have had a huge influence on me. Not only do I love his artistic flair and adherence to strategic principles in the design and construction process, but his willingness to cut against the grain of conventional wisdom appeals strongly to me on a personal level. His twelfth green at Sitwell Park exemplifies his brilliance, self-confidence, and one-of-a-kind flair for the dramatic, and his words in defense of his work amount to my all-time favorite golf architecture quote:

“I have got accustomed to measuring the ultimate popularity of a hole or course by the amount of criticism it gives rise to in the first instance…It is only natural that players who have been spoon fed on insipid, flat uninteresting golf should view with a considerable amount of suspicion anything which is undoubtedly out of the ordinary.”

Who has had the most influence on you, both inside and outside of golf?

I think I have to start with the people who first believed in me. Rick Robbins gave me my first job in course architecture. Also, Frank Henegan from Gary Player Design brought me into their organization. I learned a tremendous amount about the design and construction process from both him and his colleague, Jeff Lawrence, a Senior Designer with GPD. Also, I would be remiss not to mention my partner, Tad King. Not only is Tad one of the most talented shaper/finishers anywhere, but he is also a master of managing the construction and grow-in of golf courses. His common sense and streamlined construction methodology has had a massive influence on me, and his approach provides the basis for much of the philosophical component upon which King-Collins was founded.

What should every owner/Green Committee member learn before breaking ground on a golf construction project?

There is another way! You don’t need to hire a contractor to build the course, and for God’s sake, keep the consultants and so-called experts as far away from the project as possible. It is all too common in the golf world for unnecessary expenditures to be passed off to the client by self-interested parties under the guise of obtaining a quality result. Tad and I have both seen it firsthand, and we believe firmly that one of the biggest problems facing the game and golf construction, more specifically, is overinflated construction costs. When courses cost too much to build, people who would otherwise build golf will look in other directions for how to spend their money when developing land. At a certain point, it becomes impossible to recoup the initial investment if the golf course construction budget spirals out of hand. Furthermore, inflated green’s fees result from uncontrolled expenditures, which obviously make the game less accessible to the general public. In sum, less golf gets built AND the game costs more to play when costs aren’t controlled.

We believe, and I think that Sweetens Cove is living proof, that our method not only works, but that it is the best method for designing and building golf courses. Simply put, we are able to maintain quality and artistic control over all aspects of the course while keeping costs to a minimum. Here are a few prime examples:

During the Sweetens Cove construction, Tad and I visited another course that was also undergoing a renovation. Both Sweetens Cove and this other course were using the same sand to cap the fairways. We were told during one visit by the contractor’s project superintendent that they would no longer be using the sand because it had failed in testing and grass wouldn’t grow on it. 419 Bermuda, which will grow across a cart path, wouldn’t grow in this sand according to that job’s contractor! Think about how idiotic that is and what the consequences were for the client:

They had a mountain of sand, which they were told they could no longer use. This amounted to a huge waste of resources, time, and money.

They actually paid money to a lab and a consultant to acquire those results.

The end result is that they spent more money to go slower with zero improvement in quality. Those kinds of situations occur all of the time and the cost of decisions like that can be astronomical. As an aside, the fairways at Sweetens Cove, which were planted in the nonconforming sand, are perfect.

The second example that comes to mind is related to a project that we were hired for in the Canadian Rockies. Unfortunately, the Montane Club was never built, but we put together a $4.9M budget on a piece of land that had previously been budgeted by a former touring pro, signature architect at $1M/hole. With the signature architect’s army of consultants and a golf contractor on site, the project easily would have spiraled upwards of $25M. Had it been built, how would the client have recouped these costs? Unfortunately, stories like these repeat themselves over and over, every day all around the world of golf construction.

So, to answer your question directly, I would encourage all green committee members, owners, clients, etc. to educate themselves about construction costs and work hard to discern what costs are necessary and which ones are not. After that, they should call us (half kidding, sort of…ok, not really kidding at all).

How has your commitment to creative collaboration in the field impacted your work?

First, the design / build method, which we employ, is the best way to build golf. Golf courses are built in the field, not on a desk 1,000 miles from the site. The best decision I ever made in my career occurred right out of graduate school. I had two opportunities. One was with the Player Group as an on-site design coordinator, which would immerse me in the daily routine of a construction process or as a CAD/office designer for a competing firm. While I was hugely grateful for both offers, I chose to go with the offer from Player, and I am thankful every day that I made that decision. Not only did I fall in love with the construction process, but I learned the fundamentals of how to build a golf course and the degree to which construction and design are intertwined. So, the process of collaboration in the field forms the basis for my work. Every great golf course in recent memory has been built using the design/build method, and Tad and I formed our company on the belief that we could deliver elite quality with a reduced price using that approach.

How did you get involved with the Sweetens Cove project?

I was referred to the project by King Oehmig. I was desperate to remain involved with architecture after the economic collapse in ‘08, and King was spearheading the Gil Hanse project at Sewanee. I approached him to see if I could get involved up there, and he said he would be happy to help. He took it a step further and referred me to my client who was looking to do something with their nine-hole course, Sequatchie Valley G&CC, which would ultimately be rebranded as Sweetens Cove Golf Club after the renovation.

What place do you see courses like Sweetens Cove having in the future of the game?

I think they will be extremely important. The days of spending an entire weekend at the local club only to show up at home on Sunday night are long gone. A lot of people don’t have time for an eighteen hole round, and quality courses of alternative lengths will be increasingly important for the game as it works to stay relevant and expand. Furthermore, Sweetens Cove operates on a budget that is a fraction of your typical maintenance budget, but it delivers high quality conditions thanks to the tireless efforts of the staff and the design of the course. Finally, I think Sweetens Cove is a prime example of how you can have fascinating and engaging playing scenarios on a site that, at first glance, didn’t seem like it could possibly yield good golf. I believe that the notion that great golf cannot be derived from an inferior site is a flawed one. If anything, Sweetens Cove proves that you don’t need eighteen holes or a good site to create a great golf course. On top of that, an outsized maintenance budget isn’t needed either. If there were more courses like Sweetens Cove and fewer courses like (fill in the blank), the world would be a better place.

What is your favorite part of a golf course to design? To build?

I love bunker construction, but the most fascinating part of construction comes at the greens. Our goal is always to match the green contours to the strategy of the hole. Ideally, I want players to be considering the slope and contour of the green surfaces and their surrounds while they are on the tee. If you can get people to do that, then I think your work has been very effective. Essentially, we want to provide ground for endless shotmaking and strategic scenarios to unfold. Working to create that in the field is a thrill.

What do you love about practicing your craft?

I love the reward that comes with seeing things unfold. It starts with an idea and then it evolves a little more each day. That evolutionary process is what gets me excited. At Sweetens Cove, we kept turning it up and turning it up. It was so much fun to obsess over and refine the minutest of details on the course. Ultimately, a golf course is a sum of its parts, and it was our goal to pack Sweetens Cove with micro details across the entirety of the property. We never placed one detail in importance over another. For example, the edgework on the back side of an island in a part of a massive bunker that nobody was ever going to see was equally as important as the edgework on the flashiest, most highly visible bunker.

With that approach, you are guaranteed to have a course full of highly personalized details when it is complete. That is how you get that attitude and character in a course that you can feel but you can’t quite put your finger on. The best courses do that, and I am most proud of that aspect of Sweetens Cove. Nothing was overlooked and nothing was taken for granted. That is why a nine-hole course in a flood plain in rural Tennessee has received massive amounts of publicity and attention. None of that happened by accident. Instead it was a result of untold countless, thankless hours of labor when no one was watching. Looking back on that effort and seeing what we have today fills me with desire to go out and do it again. We love the creative process, and we are ready for #2.

What courses are at the top of your hit list to see or play next?

There are so many that it is impossible to come up with an adequate list, but here are a few off of the top of my head:

Crystal Downs, Old Town, Prairie Dunes, Maidstone, Shoreacres, Chicago, Seminole….and, I would like to wave a magic wand and take a three month trip to GBI to travel and explore the endless options there. Unfortunately, I don’t see that happening, but it would be great if it did.

When you are not working or playing golf, what are you doing?

I have six and eleven year old daughters so my wife and I spend most of our time outside of work juggling parenting responsibilities.

The Sweetens Cove Story

In the summer of 2010, I was desperately searching for a way back into golf architecture. I had heard that Gil Hanse had been hired to renovate the golf course at Sewanee, which happened to by my alma mater. I asked around and found out that a graduate of the Seminary School at Sewanee and a local golfing legend, King Oehmig, was heading up the project. Via Mark Stovall, the former superintendent of Lookout Mountain, I was placed in touch with King. In May 2010, he wrote me this note as part of an email chain about the Sewanee project:

PS: I do know that Mr. Bob Thomas, the proprietor of Sequatchie Concrete Company, who is a Sewanee Alum, has just bought a little course right outside of Kimball, TN, the Sequatchie Country Club. Right now, it needs a lot of work; I would suggest that you contact Bob, and you can tell him that I suggested that you call him about possibly helping him with fixing it up. Thanks. – KO

Reading back through that old email brings back a flood of memories: my internal feeling of desperation about returning to golf architecture, my hope for getting involved with the Sewanee project, the VERY early days of King-Collins, and my gratitude toward King for suggesting me to Mr. Thomas. Reading it now makes it hard to believe that over six years of my life have gone into this project.

Soon after King’s recommendation, we began a discussion with the Thomas family about possibly renovating the Sequatchie Valley G&CC. We were eventually hired in March of 2011 for the job, and Tad and I were extremely excited to have the opportunity to put our ideas into the ground. We brought in Gus Grantham to be lead shaper on the project, construction commenced on June 2, 2011 and the course was grassed out a year later in June of 2012.

The golf course, which only had one foot of fall across the entire property sits in a flood plain near Battle Creek. In addition to having extremely minimal drainage, the site sits on heavy clay soils. We, therefore, had a massive task ahead of us if the resulting work was to have even a modest level of playing interest. First and foremost, we had to devise a way to drain every drop of water off of the property while creating highly interesting golfing features. In the end, we moved about 300,000 cubic yards of dirt & installed fifteen (15) miles of drain pipe. I am very proud of the fact that we did all of this “in house” while building the course for a fraction of the cost of a typical project. In addition to the earthworks, the site was capped with approximately 4” of sand, which has been wonderful for helping us maintain firm and fast conditions across the property.

My overall vision for the project going in was to create an inland links that borrowed lessons from some of my favorite places in golf: Pinehurst #2, TOC, Tobacco Road, North Berwick, the 1932 version of Augusta National, and others. However, I had no interest in playing copycat. It was very important to me that the course have its own unique flair while still grasping the core lessons at the heart of the aforementioned greats. Essentially, I wanted to take the things that I liked in architecture, put them in a blender and come up with a concoction that would hopefully remind others of places they had seen or been but with a degree of uniqueness that would ideally leave one feeling as though they had found a true original. Those qualities are not something that you can plan for in the office. To the contrary, the highly personalized details only rise out of the ground through intensive site work. The long, thankless hours that we spent fashioning the course are something of which I am very proud. There were countless opportunities to mail it in or walk away from the project entirely, but we never did. I think that our unwavering commitment to it shines through in one’s playing experience, an aspect of Sweetens Cove that elevates it over most.

After grassing was complete, the course remained under the umbrella of our client’s various business interests until August 2013. They made an internal decision to return the focus of their business solely toward concrete manufacturing, and I was approached about the possibility of leasing the property from Sequatchie Concrete. Given the level of commitment that I had exhibited to the course, I was a natural fit, and as a result, I enthusiastically began the search for a like-minded partner. Fast forward to Thanksgiving 2013 when I received a call out of the blue from Mark Stovall that Ari Techner & Patrick Boyd, partners in Scratch Golf, were interested in touring the course. As always, I was pleased to show it to any interested parties, and soon after that visit, Ari & I embarked on a quest to launch Sweetens Cove. We were able to get a signed lease in the spring of 2014, and the course officially opened in October 2014. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be an owner/operator of a golf course, but my intoxicating relationship with Sweetens Cove would not allow me to see it return to nature. It’s an interesting wrinkle in the saga that Mark Stovall was the linchpin for the entire project in that he originally connected me to the project via King Oehmig and also introduced me to my future partner who would help me save it.

Following are some of my thoughts behind the architecture of the course and the backstory of the construction of each hole.

Click on any gallery image to enlarge with captions

HOLE #1 – 563 yards – par 5

I think I struggled with the design of this hole more than any other. I had a number of different ideas about the design for the green complex, before settling on the current version, which has a reverse redan tilt set inside a punchbowl. The green itself is protected front and center by a deep and foreboding hazard, which was nicknamed the “Mitre Bunker” by Sweetens Cove GM, Patrick Boyd. Like the rest of the course, the original hole was dead flat with a pond, which we were not allowed to touch, near the landing area on the right side. To complicate matters, water from the mountain on the left side of the hole would pour onto the first fairway during rain events via culverts buried under Sweetens Cove Road. After the left side was cleared of its excessive trees and underbrush, Gus, Tad, and I embarked on a plan to create a thrilling opening hole that would remain dry. Given the existing site conditions, this was an extraordinarily difficult task.

Nowhere was the moniker for the original course “Squishy Valley” more apt than on the first hole. During the original rough shaping of the hole, long buried golf balls were bouncing off of the blade of the dozer. In order to prevent water from draining onto the hole, the entire left side of the hole was built up, and water from the mountain and road are now captured prior to reaching the course. Additional drainage was installed throughout the fairway, and like all of the other holes, the fairway was capped with roughly 4-6” of sand.

Regarding the strategy, and overall look, I think that the first does a good job of introducing players to many of the themes that they will see during the round at Sweetens Cove. The tee and approach shots both allow for multiple routes of play, and the heavily contoured green welcomes well played running and aerial shots. Most importantly, Sweetens Cove never dictates to players exactly how to navigate the terrain. Instead, golfers are left to choose their own path, with each respective route providing its own unique challenge and set of options.

HOLE #2 – 375 yards – par 4

In a pure construction sense, the second at Sweetens Cove is one of the most important holes on the course. While the second hole at the original Sequatchie Valley was also a drainage nightmare, it offered an opportunity to simultaneously handle the water on a large swath of the property while creating much needed fill material for construction. The original hole was a long, straightaway par four of approximately 440 yards. When the first green was moved back toward the property line, the second tees shifted forward. Even with this change, we were still left with a massive dead space in front of the tees. In order to handle the drainage on the second hole and the second half of the first hole, we dug a large lake near the tee complex. I was adamant that most players not be forced to carry the water on the tee shot. As a result, I angled the lake away from the line of play from the blue tees forward and into the massive dead area behind the seventh green. Fill from this lake was used for shaping and to gain much needed elevation on the first, second, third, fifth, and sixth holes.

On the tee, the primary goal is to miss the deep, centrally located pot bunker, which has been nicknamed “Tupac” by a Sweetens Cove regular. The ideal line of play on most shots is from the small patch of ground adjacent to his bunker and the right-hand bunker, which is approximately thirty yards closer to the green. From this angle, players will not be forced to deal directly with the very strong contour along the left side of the green. As with all greens at Sweetens, there are many different potential pin locations. Perhaps the easiest and most fun pin is in the bowl in the front of the green, a lobe of the green which came close to never existing. When the green was originally shaped, it was about 25% smaller. I couldn’t get comfortable with that iteration, and we kept pulling out the front portion of the green until that pin location was created. I think that change took the green from good to great, and is an example of why it is so important to maintain artistic control on a project. Had we settled on the earlier version, it would’ve been fine but nowhere near as good as what is there today. The most difficult pin, by contrast, is the far left location.

As all of the greens at Sweetens are surrounded by tightly mown shortgrass, the bold contours along the front left and left side of the green can repel indifferent efforts on the approach. This green complex is as good an example as any of how short grass can at once open up a Pandora’s Box of terrible outcomes while at the same time provide unlimited shotmaking options. Short grass simply has a way of delivering a level of awe and fear that many ‘typical’ hazards can’t approach. The multifaceted nature of tightly mown turf has always fascinated me, and the second green complex, which is defended only by contour and the speed of the surrounds, fully immerses players in the shotmaking possibilities at Sweetens Cove.

HOLE #3 – 582 yards – par 5

The third hole is the second par five on the layout and the first real taste of how we utilized dead space on the Sequatchie Valley layout by tying the golf holes together. One of my favorite things about Sweetens Cove is how the holes relate to and complement one another. Prior to construction, the majority of the 72 acre site was covered with a monochromatic carpet of bermudagrass. Now, waste areas and large swaths of native plants add texture and complexity to the layout. The waste area which borders the right side of the fairway serves as a way to add strategic and visual interest, and negates the dead space that previously existed between the third and fifth holes.

During construction, the first half of the hole was raised slightly in order to ease drainage. All water from the tee to the central bunker drains to the pond by the fifth and sixth holes, and the second half of the hole drains to the pond behind the green. At the green, I really wanted to do something different with the strategy, and I chose to leave a lone Oak tree in the center of the approach. This tree and the location of the pin on the massive green impact decision making on the tee. If the pin is left, you have to come in from the left side of the fairway, and conversely, if it is on the right, it is wise to favor that side of the fairway on approach. If the pin is behind the tree, it is generally easier to approach from the right side, but the tree and the shaping of the green complex present the golfer with a host of options: intentionally play to the left or right of the tree with the intent of using the contours to funnel the ball toward the hole or play over the tree.

The green itself is divided into sections by large rolls. From the right side, the 10,000 square foot surface of the green has the appearance of a waterfall tumbling down a slope, and all pinnable areas can be reached by playing away from the hole with the intent of laying the ball dead at the hole after it rolls out along the bold contours. The third is the first truly wild green at Sweetens, and it serves in many ways as a primer for what lays ahead during one’s round. Thematically, the third fits with the rest of the golf course in that it is a terrific match play hole where eagle and birdie are achievable, but the short grass, contours, and hazards can conspire to deliver a firm punishment for anyone out of position.

HOLE #4 (King) – 169 yards – par 3

There is only one hole at Sweetens Cove that has a name on the scorecard. The fourth was aptly dubbed “King” after King Oehmig, the man who referred me to the project, in addition to providing the design inspiration for the hole.

When I first toured the site with King in July 2010, he remarked, “Rob, it would be so cool if you could find a place out here to build a Himalayas hole.” As a fellow lover of classic, quirky architecture, I wholeheartedly agreed with his proclamation, and I set out to find the spot to make his vision a reality. During one of my subsequent visits, I came upon the spot where the current fourth resides. The fourth green was tucked into a small corner at the edge of the current fourth hole. Adjacent to the miniature green was a large open area that could easily accommodate a first rate Himalayas hole. During construction, we used dirt from the lake excavation to create the ridge that runs between the tee complex and the massive 20,000 square foot green.

The green itself is 87 yards deep, and the hole can play totally blind, partially blind, or 100% visible depending upon the tee and pin location. It’s not uncommon to play the hole at 110 yards completely blind on one day and visible and 210 the next. I think the unlimited combination of pin and tee locations, along with the heavily contoured, serpentine green, makes the hole a fascinating challenge from day to day. In the sense of pure variety, fun, shotmaking options, and ability to change complexion from one round to the next, the fourth probably embodies the true spirit of Sweetens Cove more than any other on the course. Along with being great fun to detail, the massive waste hazard, which was built into the ridge, provides a sense of visual and strategic continuity with much of the rest of the course.

HOLE #5 – 293 yards – par 4

Drivable par fours are my favorite type of hole, and I knew that we had a great opportunity to do something special when we first laid out the concept for the fifth. There was no interesting terrain to work off of, but we had all the width that we needed to create a highly unique, option-filled short par four. I felt early on that the third, fourth, and fifth holes were the heart of Sweetens Cove. I’ve always liked that they represent three different pars, and the natural ebb and flow of the routing adds emotional depth to the layout. As you come off of the challenging fourth, which can play up to 210 yards, you are greeted with a drivable hole of only 283 yards. Along with multiple eagles, I have scored everything up to a ten on the hole. At its widest point, the fairway is 100 yards wide, and the boomerang green gives the hole loads of variety in possible pin placements.

On the tee, the key feature to avoid is the ten foot deep greenside bunker that is partially bordered with railway sleepers. I absolutely love what this hazard does to the player psychologically. While not large in physical size, it is guaranteed to weigh heavily on the minds of all players on the tee. The extremely penal nature of the hazard means that multiple shots to clear its depths are not uncommon. Additionally, the bunker plays larger than it looks as some of the greenside and surrounding contours will help funnel balls toward the sand. Finally, we paid extra attention in the finish to the contours around the bunker, which will allow the clever player who is stymied by the bunker to play away from the flag along the ground in an effort to lay the ball dead at the hole. One of my favorite memories of my time at Sweetens Cove involved this exact scenario. I watched a player that could not have had a handicap lower than 36 approach the green from about fifty yards away toward the pin tucked directly behind the bunker. With his hybrid in hand, he topped a ball that looked as if it would be gobbled up by the bunker. Instead, he caught the perfect contour and his ball rolled around the perimeter of the hazard and rolled to within a foot of the flag. It was an extraordinary thrill to see the contours that we had labored over help produce such a miraculous shot!

One of our members at Sweetens Cove had a similarly heroic shot this summer when he aced the hole with a three wood. Similar to the previous example, the pin was behind the pot bunker, and his shot, which carried long and right of the hazard, ran up on the strong back right ‘catcher’s mitt’ contour, took a hard left turn, and rolled fifty feet into the bottom of the cup. These types of playing scenarios are what make the course so special, and it never ceases to give me great pleasure when I hear a new story about someone’s shotmaking. Ultimately, the fact that success and failure reside in such close quarters is what makes the fifth a timelessly entertaining hole.

HOLE #6 – 456 yards – par 4

The natural ebb and flow of a good routing demands that there be a handful of highly challenging holes, and the sixth at Sweetens Cove fits that mold. A long cape hole, which plays over 450 yards from the tips, this two shotter can wreck a good scorecard with one slight misstep. I also love that the sixth is sandwiched on either side by short par fours. The psychological pull of feeling as though one needs to hang on and get through the hole without falling prone to disaster can weigh on the player. Those who are unsuccessful will find a sliver of hope with the knowledge that the possibility of redemption awaits later in the round.

Overall, the design of the sixth is fairly simple in that it uses the strategy of the cape hole design template. However, I wanted to do something different at the green. Whereas many cape holes have a kidney shaped green that hugs the water, I wanted to have a large part of the green run away from the water. In order to get the unique angle, shape, and contour right, we ended up wearing the dirt out here a little bit. In the end, though, I am really pleased with the way the hole turned out. The green has the far left, nearly impossible “Sunday” pin along with easier pins on the right and middle of the green.

The transitions and rolls throughout the green can at times complicate matters on the approach or provide the option to play away from certain locations while keeping the ball on the ground with the intent to use contour to get the ball near the hole. This is particularly true on the lower shelf, which is bisected by a strong roll. The clever player can use this feature to aim the ball away from the water while trying to get the ball close to the far left pins. The roll also adds complexity to shots that approach middle pins. Slightly pulled or short shots to the middle pins can be shed away by the same contour that may have helped you on previous rounds. Again, we see an instance of elasticity in the greens, a core component of how a golf course can provide sustained interest round after round. One of the more difficult pins on the green is, ironically, the one furthest from the water. There is a small, upper shelf, which is most easily accessed through the air, one of the few shots at Sweetens that has that characteristic. Overall, the hole requires precision and excellent ball striking to avoid bogey or worse.

HOLE #7 – 328 yards – par 4

Prior to construction, the seventh and eighth holes were by far the worst back to back par fours that I had ever seen. The two holes were bisected by an open concrete ditch, and the playing corridor of the seventh was choked down in size by trees along the right side of the fairway. On a golf course riddled with poor turf quality, the ground on the seventh, especially near the open ditch, was barren. While each hole had its challenges, I am most proud of what our team accomplished on seven and eight.

The two holes combined cover an area approximately 350 yards long by 150 yards wide. Our primary challenge lay in how to drain every square inch of this acreage without importing any fill material. This was accomplished by cutting into the ground and using the generated material for shaping. All low areas were drained to the ditch, which was covered with concrete slabs to support the earth that was pushed over its top. By taking this approach, we were able to rid the holes of the overly penal and immensely unattractive ditch while, at the same time, providing the necessary width to create the ground where endlessly varied playing scenarios could unfold.

While it is certainly not apparent upon first glance, the strategy of the hole is similar to that of the fourth at Pebble Beach, one of my favorite holes at the famous Links. On both holes, wide fairways greet the player, but the ideal angle of attack is from the far right side. At Sweetens Cove, this strategic dilemma is set up by the placement of the bunkers in relation to the angle of the tee shot and the direction of the central axis of the green. At Pebble Beach, players need to challenge the cliff along the right side of the hole to gain the best angle to the tiny green. Frightening bunkers flank both sides of the narrow putting surface, making any approach from the far left side of the fairway extremely difficult. I have been fortunate to play the hole several times, and my only scoring catastrophe there occurred after a tee shot that ended up on the far left side of the fairway, which forced me to approach the green over the left greenside bunker and from an angle that is perpendicular to the central axis of the green. From that position, the margin of error is finite, and absolute precision is required in order to achieve par, a dynamic that I absolutely love on a short par four.

Unlike the fourth at Pebble, the seventh green at Sweetens is bunkerless, and the extremely strong fall-off contours on the right and left side make approach from anywhere but the ideal sliver of fairway extremely difficult. With the tightly mown shortgrass of the surrounds, it is not uncommon for scores to balloon around this green, which may be the most devilish on the course. In fact, we have an inside joke at Sweetens that the seventh is the hardest 310 yard par five in America. In spite of its difficulty, the shortgrass around the domed green is a far more interesting hazard than bunkering, in my opinion, because it provides the opportunity for a greater number of players to attempt and find success with difficult recovery shots. It is essentially impossible for a 20+ handicap to have a chance to get up and down out of a difficult bunker, whereas even the worst players can keep the ball on the ground leaving open the possibility that their ball will wind up near the hole.

I should also mention that one of my favorite hazards on the course is the large bunker on the seventh, also known as “Dan’s Bunker,” which was named after the Coore & Crenshaw associate, Dan Proctor, who provided early assistance with bunker construction on the seventh, eighth, and ninth holes. The intricately detailed hazard is a terrific example of the bunkers at Sweetens, which were intensely labored over during every stage of construction.

HOLE #8 – 387 yards – par 4

Given that the seventh and eighth are parallel par fours of a similar length which occupy the same fairway, there was a danger that we could get repetitive in this part of the course. This potentially negative outcome was on my mind as I thought through design for the eighth hole. In contrast with the previous hole, the double plateau green at the eighth is massive, coming in at approximately 12,500 square feet. With wildly different outcomes and shotmaking scenarios possible with each hole location, it is imperative that the player identify the proper angle of approach. For nearly all hole locations, the far left or far right side of the fairway is best.

Central bunkering and a few scattered trees add drama on the tee shot. Even though the fairway is 150 yards wide, I find that this tee shot is one of the most unsettling on the course. From the tee, the area to the right of the centerline bunker appears to be much narrower than it is in reality. This visual deception creates indecision in my mind and a sense of unease on the tee. Conversely, the far left side of the fairway can be tricky to reach because of the large oak that we left during construction. Also, any balls that take the left-hand route off the tee risk winding up in one of the central bunkers if the tee shot is pushed.

Prior to construction, the fairway narrowed to approximately twenty yards wide between the ditch on the left and a large grove of pines on the right, a scenario that is hard to picture given the current realities on the ground. Without the tree removal and the ability to cover the ditch, the hole would’ve been unrecoverable. As it is now, it presents a wild variety of shotmaking options on approach and recovery, and the extreme width of the hole allows golfers of all skill levels to choose their own route to the pin.

The green, which is one of the largest on the course, is also one of the most severely contoured. It is often, fairly, called a sideways Biarritz green. While it was not my intention going into construction to design and build a green of this style, the end product is a result of our approach to the process. I explained to Gus, our shaper, that I wanted a double plateau with a large, central roll fronting the green. I trusted Gus’s immense talent and let him take a stab at putting something cool in the ground. Given that it was only our second green to build, we were very early on in the construction process. What Gus shaped blew me away and solidified my belief that we were well on our way to delivering something exceptional at Sweetens Cove. I think the evolution of this green perfectly encapsulates our approach to field work. Had I shackled Gus and not believed in his innate abilities, the green wouldn’t be anywhere near as good as it is. I think that designers need to grip the job firmly enough to have control but loosely enough to let uniquely artistic features unfold. In the end, if the green hadn’t fit my eye, it would’ve been changed, but the point is that you have to have a certain level of trust to let things unfold naturally. The key is in laying out a vision and trusting the people with whom you are working to help you deliver. At Sweetens Cove, we didn’t have a lot of personnel, but the ones that we did have were immensely talented and capable of creating unique and memorable golf holes.

As a penultimate hole on a course designed for match play, I am very fond of the ability of the eighth to unveil both heroic and disastrous play. With a very wide range of potential scores in play, golfers embroiled in a tight match will feel nervous with the lead and optimistic playing from behind, a psychological dynamic key to all great match play venues.

HOLE #9 – 148 yards – par 3

Like everywhere else on the course, there was nothing remarkable about the ground at the ninth hole prior to construction. In fact, the old ninth green was bizarrely located underneath the tree that borders the left side of the current first. The one natural feature that we did have to work with on the entire course was the hill leading from the clubhouse site to the valley floor. By locating the tee behind the eighth and benching the green into the hillside beneath the clubhouse site, we had the bones of a thrilling finishing hole. All that was left to do was to shape a 10,000 square foot redan / short hybrid green and construct and detail a two acre waste hazard that would provide the necessary angle and visual drama for a highly unique par three finish.

One of my favorite aspects of the course is that it ends on a one-shotter. All of the match play drama that can build over the preceding holes can come down to a 130 yard short iron shot. As I mentioned before, each hole at Sweetens Cove has a wide gap in potential outcomes and scores, and it could be argued that the ninth has the widest gap of all. To date, the hole has seen an extraordinarily disproportionate number of holes in one, and the dreaded “other” is never too far away. Fifteen aces have been registered since we opened two years ago, and none were more exciting than the ones that occurred during the Mack Cunningham Baylor Preview Golf Tournament in August. We hosted thirty of the best female high school players from around the state, and the fireworks at the ninth on the final day of the tournament put the design of the home hole on full display. Early on the second day of the tournament, two sophomores playing in the same group beat seventeen million to one odds to record back to back aces. Not to be outdone, Ashley Gilliam carded a hole in one on her final swing of the day to give her team a one stroke victory in the tournament – a walk off ace!

During the planning stages and construction, we imagined that it would be possible for that type of drama to occur on our home hole, but what I witnessed that day was beyond my wildest imagination. Unlike many one shot holes, this hole presents a variety of options on the tee shot. You can play away from the far left flags by using the giant redan kick plate to bring the ball around to the hole, or the bold golfer can choose to fly directly at the flag. When the pin is on the middle tier of the green, the hole plays much more like a traditional short. By marrying two of the most iconic par three designs into one on hole, I think we created one of the most unique, entertaining, and vexing one-shotters anywhere.

Another great aspect of the ninth is the elevated nature of the green, which allows golfers to see the entire complex with its highly visual bunkering from every hole on the property. During construction, I realized that this visual reality is similar to the auditory trigger that one has when they are approaching a big rapid on a rafting trip. Analogous to the sound of a roaring river, the dominating visual presence of the ninth is a constant companion for the golfer. You know that drama and exacting shotmaking await you in the future and are fully aware that in order to complete your round successfully, you will eventually have to face that harrowing final shot. The sense of anticipation for that moment adds to the drama of the final shot.

I think the hole is a perfect ending to one’s round at Sweetens. It presents a variety of options, and thematically, the ninth is another unique take on classically inspired golf architecture motifs.

Sweetens Cove has become a hit because it is a wonder. Years ago, it might have been reasonable to doubt that Rob Collins and Tad King would ever have the opportunity to prove that they could do it again. Now, the self-confidence that Collins has always carried inside is manifesting more projects in the ground. The hits just keep on coming.

A then and now look at Pine Valley and what has made its greatness endure for a century

The early days of golf in America were imbued with enthusiasm. The quirky little stick and ball game that had migrated across the Atlantic from the British Isles captured hearts and minds with its blend of outdoor recreation, a test of physical and mental abilities, competition and camaraderie. It did not take long, however, for a sense of restlessness and discontent, particularly directed at our playing fields, to set in. “Why,” players asked, “are our courses so inferior to the Scottish links?” Nevermind that those courses had evolved and improved over centuries on ground that was ideal for golf. Such is the nature of American culture—we want the best, and we want it now.

It was this impulse that sent Charles Blair Macdonald across the pond on a search for the ideal holes that he would use as inspiration for the National Golf Links of America. He was not the only one pulling on this thread. In Philadelphia, a group of avid amateurs led by George Crump was turning their own dissatisfaction into a plan. It is not clear that these men intended to create a course that would be considered among the world’s best for decades to come, but at Pine Valley that is exactly what they did.

The Dreamer

“The late George Crump must have had more than a touch of prophetic imagination…what was in Crump’s mind when he first thought of Pine Valley was that somewhere there ought to be one course where as far as humanly possible, the best man of the day should win because every bad or indifferent shot should meet with its reward.” – Bernard Darwin

To onlookers, the man who is doggedly pursuing a dream might not appear as a visionary. Instead, he is crazy, or to the more charitable, a poor fool. Perhaps that is why those who could not see the picture in its creator’s mind labelled Pine Valley “Crump’s Folly”. And given the hardship that was endured to bring the course first to life and then to long-term sustainability, their short-sighted judgment was not entirely baseless. In the end, which George Crump would tragically not live to see, his detractors would be proven quite wrong about the course in the New Jersey pine barrens.

George Crump surveys the land that would become Pine Valley

Along with New York, Boston and Chicago, Philadelphia was a hotbed of activity in golf’s formative years. At the center of that scene was George Crump. Hospitality was his business, but the word also applies to the way he lived. By all accounts, he was the kind of genuinely engaging and friendly person to whom others naturally gravitated. It is no surprise then that he was at the center of a group of Philadelphians who shared a love of the game of golf, and each other.

These men, who were referred to as “the fraternity”, were avid sportsmen, successful businessmen and bon vivants. They were members at local clubs including Merion, Philadelphia Cricket Club and Huntingdon Valley. They played matches against one another, traveled to Atlantic City and beyond for winter golf, and supported the growth of the game in the city through the creation of Cobb’s Creek. Their ranks included architects George Thomas and A.W. Tillinghast, and Merion’s Hugh Wilson, as well as George Crump’s close compatriots Howard Perrin and Reverend Simon Carr, who was described as America’s Top Priestly Golfer”. Not only did they play together, but they also collaborated and wrote about the issues of golf administration, architecture, rules and handicapping. They were leaders in this nascent period of the game.

Fraternity members William P. Smith, A.W. Tillinghast and George Crump

How often have men gathered and, fueled by libations, indulged in the making of grand plans that never progress beyond the threshold of the barroom? In order for dreams to become a reality, there must be an individual who acts as a catalyst. For the fraternity, George Crump played that role. The group had been disgruntled both with winter course conditions in Philadelphia, and with their own performance against rivals from Long Island and Boston. A new, better course located off the train line to Atlantic City would kill two birds with one stone—Crump set about making it happen. He took a study trip to the British Isles and Europe, and while there met Harry Colt. Sunningdale and the other courses of the London healthland were particularly inspiring, and so it came as no surprise when Crump sought out the famous architect for assistance with his dream chasing.

Prior to Colt’s arrival, George Crump had exhaustively explored the land, and he held strong inclinations about holes to build. Nonetheless, he let his architect work unencumbered by preconceived notions. After a week spent studying the site, Colt produced a routing, which Crump then married with his own. This marked the beginning of a year’s long process of soliciting ideas and then synthesizing them into the bigger picture. Input was readily accepted, but the final decisions were Crump’s. In his brilliant history of Pine Valley’s creation Crump’s Dream, author Andrew Mutch summed up the collaborative process. “A friend to all, Crump was the colander into which countless experts poured their ideas,” wrote Mutch. “He sifted the collected intellectual property retaining what he intuitively knew would prove useful. Behind the affable sportsman was an uncommonly driven—even stubborn—man who would stop at nothing to attain his dream. The real genius of Crump was in using the gifted minds from the Philadelphia Fraternity to assemble his mosaic upon the beautiful lands of Sumner.”

Harry Colt’s plan for Pine Valley

The hard work of clearing the land of trees and building golf holes got underway. Progress was slow but steady, with Crump unafraid to deviate from the plan when a better option presented itself. For example, William Evans wrote of a change to the 13th in the Philadelphia Public Ledger, “Ground for the fairways had been cleared along the ridge…It occurred to Mr. Crump that the panoramic view from this ridge would be very desirable, and consequently he sent a gang of men in there to fell the trees. When the work was done, a magnificent golf hole was in evidence, a far greater hole that the one originally planned.”

In addition to being an architectural savant, George Crump also had a knack for promotion. He pioneered the concept of preview play. As holes were finished, play began as soon as possible for members and guests. A steady stream of high profile visitors stopped by to see the new course including C.B. Macdonald, Donald Ross, Robert Hunter, Walter Travis, Dr. Alister MacKenzie, William Fownes, Ben Sayers, Glenna Collett, Francis Ouimet, Chick Evans, Grantland Rice, Bernard Darwin, Max Behr, Jerry Travers, Alexa Sterling, John G. Anderson, Long Jim Barnes, Walter Hagen and Bobby Jones. Reviews were almost entirely glowing, but these visits served another purpose. Crump’s intent was for the course to evolve based on observing players and listening to their feedback. He continued to make mental notes and tinker as construction progressed. Over time, he expected the course to make a steady march toward perfection.

Progress was acutely painful at times, however. The field of agronomy was far from the established science that it is today. Growing healthy turf involved trial and error, which in the case of Pine Valley, amounted to a great deal of dead grass on the fairways and putting surfaces. Once again, Crump gathered ideas and anecdotes from all quarters, but the troubles mounted. Coupled with the financial and operational strain of attempting to build a golf course during war time, as well as other health issues, the visionary’s will to proceed finally ran out with fourteen holes completed. Tragically, George Crump took his own life before he was able to see the entirety of his dream course materialized.

Following through on what he started would fall to his friends in the fraternity.

A Cast of Characters

“George A. Crump, who died in 1918, loved golf for its own sake, and he loved the good shots of the game. More than most men, however, he realized that the making of good shots must be encouraged by good courses. Mr. Crump’s ideas led to the building of a course that will always be a monument to him. The Pine Valley course to a greater degree than any course that I have ever seen possesses individuality…Mr. Crump worked constantly on the whole landscape garden as if it were a picture, adding the needed touch here and there with the patience of an artist.” – Chick Evans

In spite of the deep sorrow felt by Crump’s friends at the loss of their ring leader, they resolved to carry on and complete Pine Valley. Hugh Wilson was the first to make a big impact. He built the remaining four holes from the Crump-Colt plan and managed to solve the agronomic issues. The turf would finally be on par with the design.

Next, it was decided that the intended improvements should be carried out to the fullest extent possible. A two day Advisory Committee meeting led by founding members Howard Perrin and Simon Carr was convened in which participants racked their brains for any recollections of Crump’s intended tweaks. C.H. Alison was tapped to provide his thoughts on course upgrades, which neatly dovetailed with the findings of the Committee. That work was carried out faithfully, and it was agreed that it finally met George Crump’s lofty standards.

The course continued to evolve in the years that followed as it matured and was played by more members, guests and competitive golfers. The pimple was removed from the putting surface on the 18th in 1928. William Flynn added a second green on the 9th and softened the bunkering in front of the 18th green. In 1929, Perry Maxwell, who by then was a member, made further modifications. He tuned up several greens and their surrounds, including the 4th, 5th and 9th. Through all these changes, present was the steady hand of greenkeeper Eb Steiniger, who consistently delivered playing surfaces that allowed Pine Valley to shine.

Eb Steiniger studies the bunkering on the 15th in 1954

Today, the course is under the care of Superintendent Richard Christian and consulting architect Tom Fazio, who has been a member since the 1980s and whose Uncle George was the club’s playing pro in the 1940s. Fazio built the companion short course, and has undertaken some tree removal and bunker renovation. George Crump did not intend for Pine Valley to be a static golf course—he desired continuous improvement. Would he want trees cleared and vistas restored? Would he like the new aesthetic of the bunkers and sandy wastes, or would he prefer they be more rugged? What would he make of modern agronomic capabilities? We, like Fazio and the membership, are left to speculate and debate. One thing is certain though, he would have loved to be in on lively discussions with friends, and he would hopefully take some satisfaction in Pine Valley’s position among the greatest golf courses in the world.

The Course Then & Now

“I personally feel that of all the golf courses that exist in golf, Pine Valley may be the only one where by moving a tee, fairway or green, you may not be able to improve it. You may be able to move something for the sake of change, but in terms of actually moving or recreating or adding something relative to the design of the golf course, I personally don’t think you could make it any better.” – Tom Fazio

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In hindsight, there was an alchemical process that led to the creation of Pine Valley. Inspiration drawn from Scotland and the London heathland, applied to suitable ground that had been meticulously studied, influenced by brilliant design minds like Colt, Tillinghast and Wilson, allowed to freely evolve as opportunities for betterment arose. A formula that seems destined to yield greatness as we look back at it now was far less apparent when the alchemist was working through the steps. George Crump gave himself completely to Pine Valley, and through the course, his dream endures.

A course as timeless as Pine Valley is worthy of a tour delivered through both past and present lenses. Fortunately for the curious, the historical record is filled with the observations and impressions of many of golf’s greatest minds from the last century. To the fullest extent, their words have been employed, with links allowing for further exploration. Simon Haines (@Hainesy76) has generously opened up his treasure trove of historical photos covering almost every hole, which are contrasted with the modern photography of Jon Cavalier (@LinksGems). A fortunate few players are afforded the opportunity to directly experience Pine Valley’s brilliance. For the rest of us, the hope is that the tour that follows allows for vicarious pleasure. Enjoy!

HOLE #1 – 421 yards – par 4

Crump was a match player, and he thought of his opener as both a first and potential 19th hole, drawing inspiration from one of his personal favorites at Hoylake—scorable, yet able to cause acute difficulties. Ran Morrissett of GolfClubAtlas wrote of Pine Valley’s 1st, “The demand for clear thinking is immediate: with the front portion of the green ample in width, is the golfer content to take two putts to get down? Or is he confident enough to chase after back hole locations where the green narrows? A wonderful dilemma posed by a bunkerless green site.”

HOLE #2 – 368 yards – par 4

Players quickly realize that, at Pine Valley, the yardage on the card is meaningless vis a vis a hole’s level of difficulty. “My word, do you play this hole, or just photograph it?” wrote John La Cerda in his profile for The Saturday Evening Post in 1945. Golf Digest’s Jerry Tarde further describes the experience. “The 2nd is the longest, most treacherous 368 yards in golf,” he explained in his flyover video tour. “Church pew bunkers run up both sides of the fairway to a rising hill with a lunarscape of sand pits. You can only see the top of the flagstick.” Tom Fazio referred to the second shot on the 2nd as the impetus for building the short course. He just wanted to hit that shot over and over. “The green is even more perilous,” continued Tarde. “A missed shot is a death sentence. As the members say, Welcome to Pine Valley.’”

HOLE #3 – 198 yards – par 3

The collection of one-shotters at Pine Valley may be the best on the planet. They are varied, and all demanding of well-struck tee balls. “As sightly a hole as the golfing artist could wish to view; and as severe a test of golf skill as the expert iron player could crave,” wrote founding member Simon Carr in a 1915 issue of Golf Illustrated. “The green, a perfectly beautiful natural conformation, lies about fifteen feet below the level of the tee, with every part of its surface fully in view…A weakly hit ball, or a slightly pulled ball, needs no urging to trickle, or to shoot, into the depths of the graceful, serpentine bunker that winds around the whole left side of the green. On the right side, just at the distance the ball should carry, the bunker pushes two hungry mouths partway into the green, ready to gobble a ball the least bit too far to the right…There is no puzzle, no trick, no blind chance of play. It just requires the skill and nerve of a very finely controlled long iron shot.”

HOLE #4 – 499 yards – par 4

Crump was not shy about confronting players with intimidating looks from the tee. The experience elicited colorful reactions from early guests and visiting journalists. “(The course) has sandy wastes so extensive that they should be crossed only by camel,” wrote John Kieran from the New York Times. “From the fourth tee, the indignant visitor looks out over nothing but sand. The caddies point somewhere along the skyline and say, ‘Aim up there.’ There should at least be a pyramid or an obelisk as a roadmark for wayward golf traffic.” There is more to this stout four-par than the tee shot, as explained by Morrissett. “Crump was a master at fitting the green to the hole,” he wrote. “It comes as no surprise to find the green is open in front and is one of the biggest on the course. The green itself follows the general slope of the land, which is from front to back.”

HOLE #5 – 238 yards – par 3

There is a distinct satisfaction in successfully producing a shot at the very limits of one’s ability. The architects of the Golden Age often included a long par-3 to provide the opportunity for this thrill, and at Pine Valley, it comes at the magnificent 5th. Bernard Darwin described the experience well when he wrote, “What a memorable short hole is the fifth—one full spoon shot over a tremendous chasm stretching from tee to green, a wilderness of firs on the right, big bunkers on the left. To land the ball on that green—and there is no reason in the world why you should not do it if you are not frightened—provides a moment worth living for.”

HOLE #6 – 394 yards – par 4

“When the ridge along the 6th is reached, the panorama is so magnificent that it grips and holds hard like a spell,” gushed A.W. Tillinghast in American Cricketer magazine. “I defy any bred-in-the-bone golfer to stand on the ridge, gazing over that marvelous sweep of country, without feeling a glow of great satisfaction stealing over him, and he must say in his heart, ‘It is good to be here.’” Although the maturing of the forest has changed the view from that which Tilly saw in his day, Pine Valley is still spell-binding on every hole, including this dogleg right par-4 that invites players to challenge the corner for an advantageous approach in to the angled green.

HOLE #7 – 636 yards – par 5

In the modern age, where three-shotters often only take two, Pine Valley holds players to a more demanding standard, requiring consecutive shots that are both well conceived and struck. “The 7th is the longest hole on the course, 636 from the back, with Hell’s Half Acre, the hazard at its midpoint,” said Tarde. “You might say there are no bunkers at Pine Valley. It is one big bunker with occasional patches of grass. There also are no rakes at Pine Valley. Golfers are asked to smooth their deepest footprints, but otherwise the sand is left to be tended by the wind and rain.”

HOLE #8 – 328 yards – par 4

The clever architect creates a variety of challenges. As noted by Morrissett, “Since Crump’s death in 1918, Pine Valley has never once fallen prey to the false quest for length that first gripped courses in the 1960s.” The greatest courses test skill with every club in the bag, including the short clubs. When players are given an opportunity to have wedge in hand, those shots, including the approach to either of the two greens at the 8th, are no gimmes. “Pine Valley is generally considered to be the most terrifying course in the world,” penned Darwin, “and I, for one, have small doubt that the eighth hole is the most terrifying on it. After a good drive, the trembling wretch takes his mashie niblick and pitches for that little triangle of safety. If he fails, well…”

HOLE #9 – 458 yards – par 4

The 9th is the second straight par-4 that had an alternate green added, although it plays quite differently than the 8th. The approach shot to Crump’s original left green is the more demanding of the two. According to course historian James Finegan, “The player’s instinct is to take plenty of club in order to get up. Shallow bunkers in the back may contain the too aggressive shot, but eight or nine feet beyond the green, the earth falls abruptly away down a wooded slope so long and steep that the ball, if it doesn’t fetch up against a tree trunk, may actually edge out into the 18th hole, which, for all practical purposes, might as well be on another planet.”

HOLE #10 – 161 yards – par 3

If there is one hole that has come to embody Pine Valley in our consciousness, it is this short par-3. Simon Carr summed up the experience beautifully. “The tee is built out on the very edge of the ridge, with the valley on the left, 50 feet below,” he wrote. “The green is located on a knoll in the side of a huge sand hill. In the distance, the green looks like an uncut emerald, as it rests amid the yellow and white sands of the surrounding bunkers. It is the jewel of the round…The wind always blows out on the edge of the ridge where the tee is placed; it tests one’s judgment soundly to gauge this important factor accurately in playing the shot. Tee shots at this hole are either good or bad…One must play the shot just right, or fail.”

HOLE #11 – 397 yards – par 4

“Every hole at Pine Valley is dramatic and memorable,” wrote Tom Doak in Golf Magazine, “even the holes that nobody talks about, like the medium-length 11th, with its perfect tee shot into a saddled fairway and perfect pitch back up a narrow valley.” This hole presents subtler challenges, but playing an approach from an uneven lie to a well-defended green is no less demanding than facing a wall of sand, water hazard, or the Devil’s Asshole.

HOLE #12 – 337 yards – par 4

In the modern era of aerial golf, angles still matter at Pine Valley. From the right tee, the fairway is wide and allows for advantageous positioning into the long axis of the green. Finegan explained the versatility of the 12th, “If the hole is played from the oft-neglected left-hand tee, elevated and tucked well back in a glade, the forced carry is more like 170 yards than 150, the landing area is not in view, and the subsequent shot to the narrow green is longer and rather on a sharp angle, with only the top half of the flagstick visible. The left-hand tee was built in 1962 for the express purpose of toughening this hole. It succeeds admirably.”

HOLE #13 – 486 yards – par 4

One of the course’s many strengths is the variety. Lengths, directions, elevation, constantly shifting, keeping players on their toes, epitomized by the stretch from eleven through thirteen. “Pine Valley blends all three schools of design—heroic, penal and strategic—over the whole course, often on a single hole. For rugged grandeur, 13 may be the best of the best,” gushed Tarde. “486 yards, first to a perched landing area on the right, then a long second sweeping left, with death or glory at hand.” Simply put, an all-world four par.

HOLE #14 – 220 yards – par 3

Wiley architects often use beauty to mask peril, a tactic that players must guard against at the par-3 14th. “For the photographer or painter, the hole is enthralling,” wrote Finegan. “For the player, it is unnerving. The ‘island’ green awaits far below in its picturesque setting of water and trees and sand. Because of the falling nature of the shot, the hole plays less than the measured distance. The breeze, generally off the port bow, can be tricky, often hurling a softly flighted ball directly into the water short of the green or into the forest that is everywhere the water is not, yet sometimes failing to influence in any fashion a crisply lined iron that, alas, now splashes in the water beyond the green.”

HOLE #15 – 615 yards – par 5

The second of Pine Valley’s two par-5s is straightforward, and just plain hard. “It might have been 15 that Robert Trent Jones had in mind when he called Pine Valley the most difficult course in the world,” explained Tarde. “For most of us, this par-5 requires four full shots and a putt. Is it unfair at times? Maybe so. But isn’t that the ultimate test? Can a player hit a good shot, only to be crushed by a horrific result, and still find it within him or herself to rise to the occasion on the next one?”

HOLE #16 – 475 yards – par 4

The 16th switches back and runs down to the water, before the course turns and heads for home. Position off the tee is important to approach the green set up against the lake. “Those who can clear the sand from the tee on the optimum line will have the luxury of hitting an iron from the right side of the fairway to the left side of the largest green on the course, which is to say hitting away from the lake,” expanded Finegan. “A grand and wonderful hole it is, and one which, like its predecessor, fully rewards the big basher.”

HOLE #17 – 345 yards – par 4

One can imagine how exciting match play can be coming down the stretch. Opportunities for triumph and disaster abound. Morrissett peeled back a layer when he wrote, “(The 17th) highlights how revolutionary George Crump truly was and how well he understood the psychology of the game. Like Donald Ross, Crump understood that there must be give and take by the course architect and he allows the golfer a chance to birdie the penultimate hole to break 80…or 90…or 100. Of course, rash tactics that place the greedy golfer above the day’s hole location on this sharply pitched green can be the undoing of an otherwise fine round.”

HOLE #18 – 483 yards – par 4

The home hole encapsulates much of the spirit of Pine Valley. There are forced carries on both shots, first over sand and then over water and sand. There are intimidating hazards complemented by subtle contours. There is incomplete visibility—it’s all there on the 18th, but not necessarily all there in front of you. Both the fronting bunkers and green surface have undergone changes, making both less penal than they were in Crump’s day. Newspaperman Ted Hoyt described the infamous feature that was later removed. “The famous pimple on the 18th green at Pine Valley,” he wrote, “has probably been cussed out more by aggravated linksmen than any other single hazard in the country.”

“The world doesn’t need a lot more courses that are just like Pine Valley. Designers have been trying to imitate it, and they will forever fall short. But if more golf courses were developed by guys who cared as much as George Crump did, we’d be on the right road.” – Tom Doak

Is Pine Valley difficult? Of course it is. In fact, although many consider it to be the greatest course in the world, those who prefer a more relaxed feel for their everyday golf would not designate it their favorite, precisely because it is relentlessly demanding. But it is so much more than a hard golf course. From the use of the land in the routing, to strategic placement of hazards, to the contours of the greens, it is evident to all that the course was a labor of love for a group of golf’s best minds during the Golden Age. Its greatness endures because it taps into the satisfaction one feels having overcome a true challenge, even if only for one shot. At Pine Valley, every victory, large or small, is earned.

Beyond the play of the course though, let’s not forget that the founders sought to create a place of natural beauty where enjoyment of time spent on sport with one’s fellows would reign supreme. As was often the case in the early days, Simon Carr put words dripping with a religious fervor to the feelings of visitors then, and now: “It is then a golfing Paradise. It is so peaceful, so secluded, so restful, that you feel as if you were a thousand miles from the rout of the big city…As you wander over the Pine Valley hills and through its dales, your eye is feasted, with nature’s sweet, wild beauty; the odor of the wholesome pine delights your nostrils; you seem to gather health and cheerfulness at every step. There is the peace of seclusion, nature’s godly beauty, the pure joy of most excellent golf. With a sturdy old friend by your side to share it all—what more could an earthly paradise be?”

A photo recap of Jon Cavalier’s 2020 trip down under

Jon Cavalier kicked off his 2020 golf adventures in style by taking a trip that will likely remain a dream for even the most ardent American golf traveler—Australia. The word epic is overused, but a quick look at the stats indicates that it applies to this trip: 15 days, 20 courses, 23 rounds, 6 cities/islands, 10 flights, 25,000 air miles, 6 rental cars, 1,500 road miles, dozens of new friends and thousands of great memories.

Jon got a heaping helping of Aussie flavor that he captured with his breathtaking photography. Compiled below, the photos will surely bring back great memories for those fortunate enough to have strolled those fairways, or will serve as fodder for those of us who can only live vicariously. Enjoy!

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ROUND 1: YARRA YARRA GOLF CLUB

The Australia tour kicked off in Melbourne with a round at Yarra Yarra Golf Club, a beautiful 1929 Alex Russell design with recent upgrades by Renaissance Golf. Great par-3s and unbelievable greens—some of the best I’ve seen anywhere.

ROUND 2: ST. ANDREWS BEACH

A 2004 collaboration between Tom Doak and Mike Clayton, St. Andrews Beach is long on gorgeous scenery and wildly fun greensites. Doak and Clayton largely took what the land gave them here, and Mother Nature was, as usual, quite generous.

ROUND 3: VICTORIA GOLF CLUB

This venerable sandbelt classic, influenced by the great Alister MacKenzie in 1928, recently received a facelift via restored greens newly seeded with Pure Distinction grass and new fairway irrigation. Truly a treat to play.

ROUND 4: WOODLANDS GOLF CLUB

I’d never heard of Woodlands before this trip, but I’m certainly glad we got to see it. Reminiscent of the great members clubs back home, the course features some terrific greens, great par-3s and several world-class short par-4s.

ROUND 5: BARWON HEADS GOLF CLUB

An incredibly pleasant surprise, this historic links dates to 1920 and was designed by Vic East, head professional at Royal Melbourne. It’s the Australian version of England’s Rye and America’s Kittansett, and it is amazing.

ROUND 6: ROYAL MELBOURNE WEST

In a word, amazing. Designed by Alister MacKenzie in 1926 and built over five years by Alex Russell and greenskeeper Mick Morcom using only a horse-drawn plow and scoop, this is golf at its very best. World-class in every respect.

ROUND 7: ROYAL MELBOURNE EAST

Is it possible to have a better day of golf without getting in your car than an afternoon round at Royal Melbourne West followed by an evening round on the East? I don’t think it is. Quite possibly the best “B” course in the world.

ROUND 8: KINGSTON HEATH GOLF CLUB

A true charmer on an intimate parcel, Kingston Heath brings to mind Garden City Men’s or Chicago Golf as a masterpiece of strategic design on flat ground. Cliche, but I could play here every day and be quite happy. Lovely spot.

ROUND 9: ROYAL MELBOURNE WEST

A place so nice we played it twice—I could play it a hundred more times and still never experience every aspect of its brilliance. Rare that a course with such high expectations exceeds every bit of them, but Royal Melbourne does.

ROUND 10: PENINSULA KINGSWOOD NORTH

Of all the places people recommended that we see in Melbourne, none was more popular than this 2019 redesign by Mike Cocking. To all who suggested it, our thanks—this is a remarkable golf club and a brilliant design.

ROUND 11: PENINSULA KINGSWOOD SOUTH

A quick sunset loop around this 2019 Mike Cocking redesign was a real treat. The two courses here are both a lot of fun, but each has its own unique feel. The Peninsula Kingswood members are quite fortunate to have two of the best in town.

ROUNDS 12 & 13: CAPE WICKHAM GOLF LINKS

WOW! This 2015 links byMike DeVries on the northern tip of tiny King Island beneath the Cape Wickham lighthouse is absolutely incredible.Everyone who has previously hyped this course is right: Cape Wickham is off-the-charts dramatic, stunning and fun.

ROUND 14: OCEAN DUNES

A surprise stunner, this 2016 Graeme Grant design hugs the rugged coastline of King Island. Jagged rocks, colorful ice plant and huge breakers highlight the coastal holes beginning each nine, while the inland holes play through giant dunes.

ROUND 15: KING ISLAND GOLF & BOWLING CLUB

King Island’s oldest course, the Golf & Bowling Club has 16 tees and 12 greens, which combine to form an extremely fun 18 holes with ocean views everywhere. Reminiscent of the original Sheep Ranch and the back nine at Pacific Grove.

ROUNDS 16 & 17: BARNBOUGLE DUNES

As authentic a seaside links as there is outside of the UK, this 2004 design by Tom Doak, Mike Clayton and Brian Schneider is draped in and across huge dunes on Tasmania’s north coast. A brilliant design in a beautiful location.

ROUND 18: LOST FARM

This 2010 20-hole Bill Coore design sits northeast of Barnbougle Dunes across the Great Forester River and is a wonderful mix of holes in large seaside dunes and expansive sandy parkland. Put together 38-hole complex at Barnbougle is truly world-class.

ROUND 19: BONDI GOLF & DIGGER CLUB

It was pouring rain during our morning visit to this beautiful little 9-holer, but we came back to the area for dinner at dusk and I nabbed this shot of the course atop the cliffs, Bondi Beach and the lights of Sydney.

ROUND 20: NEWCASTLE GOLF CLUB

A drive two hours north of Sydney brought us to this sandy gem cut through a beautiful forest of eucalyptus. Newcastle Golf Club has fairway contours that rival the very best of the sandbelt, and some fun greens to boot. Great spot.

ROUND 21: NEW SOUTH WALES GOLF CLUB

We wrapped our visit to Sydney with a stop at the incomparable New South Wales. Conditions weren’t great for photography, but were perfect for golf. This place is truly a stunner—great design on an incredible piece of land. Unforgettable.

ROUND 22: KOOYONGA GOLF CLUB

Our penultimate stop, Kooyonga was strongly recommended by many of our friends and followers as a must-see in Adelaide, and as usual, they were right. Five Australian Opens have been contested on this 1923 W.H. Rymill design.

ROUND 23: ROYAL ADELAIDE GOLF CLUB

Our final round, and we saved one of the best for last. What’s not to love? Royal Adelaide features red sand bunkers, a brilliant routing, with a strong MacKenzie influence, and best of all, a train running through the course. Remarkable!

BONUS: KOALAS

Australia is full of amazing animals, none more majestic than the sleepy koala. These little guys have been devastated by deforestation, fire and disease, but Australia’s wildlife sanctuaries are working hard to protect them.

For fans of Australian golf and Jon’s photography, stayed tuned for updates to the galleries on this page. More photos to come over time…

A look at the heart of Blue Mound Golf & Country Club, the tremendous set of Seth Raynor designed greens

For a golf course to be great, its different components—land, routing, strategy, hazards, greens—should ideally work together, and have independent strength of their own. Ask a large enough group of golf geeks which of these course elements is the most important, and the answers will likely run the gamut. Such is the varied nature of the game, its playing fields and the opinions of its players. A strong case can be made that the greens are the heart and soul of any golf course. Their orientation, magnitude and contours create a game within the game, and when well-conceived, dictate strategy all the way back to the tee. It is nearly impossible to have a truly great course without a set of high quality greens. Pebble Beach is the exception that proves this rule, and only by virtue of its setting in one of the most beautiful and awe-inspiring places on planet golf.

Seth Raynor, in collaboration with both Charles Blair Macdonald and Charles Banks, belongs on the Mount Rushmore of green builders. The size and boldness of his green complexes is matched with contouring of the putting surfaces that oscillates between wild and sublimely subtle. His greens can take a lifetime to master on the approach and with the flatstick. Among the MacRaynor cognoscenti, the sets at National Golf Links of America, Chicago Golf Club and Camargo often get the nod as the best. Few will put Raynor’s work at Blue Mound Golf & Country Club in that rarified company, but perhaps they should. Recent work on expansions, surrounds, bunkering and opening up the property through tree management is placing a spotlight on Raynor’s genius, and placing Blue Mound in the must-see conversation.

Mr. Raynor Goes to Milwaukee

“Very little has actually been written about that course,” said Seth Raynor historian Nigel Islam, “but we do know a few things.” After moving from its original location, the club recruited Raynor, whose reputation as a solo designer had been elevated in the Midwest with the openings at Shoreacres and Camargo, as well as the rework of Chicago Golf Club. Indeed, Macdonald gushed about how his protege had proven himself a prodigy. “He scarcely knew a golf ball from a tennis ball when we first met,” recounted the mentor in Scotland’s Gift – Golf. “…he never became much of an expert in playing golf, yet the facility with which he absorbed the feeling which animates old and enthusiastic golfers to the manor born was truly amazing, eventually qualifying him to discriminate between a really fine hole and an indifferent one.”

On a gentle piece of ground on a plateau above the Menomonee River, Raynor designed the course to be an enjoyable challenge for players of all skill levels. A pamphlet issued by the club in 1924, prior to the opening of the course, described the holes and passed along a message from the architect to the membership. “Mr. Raynor says that any player who can get a carry of about 100 yards will keep out of trouble,” it read. “ It will be an interesting course to the great number of players who score 90 and over, and at the same time, it will tantalize those few golfers who are able to shoot 80 or better.” Raynor intended for players at Blue Mound to have room to chart a suitable route to each green where they would ultimately find abundant interest and challenges on the putting surfaces.

Seth Raynor still greets players with a watchful eye on the 1st tee at Blue Mound

Over the decades, both fairways and greens shrank at Blue Mound. Thankfully, that trend has been reversed. Retrovation work got underway as the highly-regarded Bruce Hepner consulted with former Greenkeeper Steve Houlihan on tree removal, changes to mowing lines and greens expansion. The process has continued, driven by the Greens and Grounds Committee and energetic, new Superintendent Alex Beson-Crone, including reconstruction of the Alps and Short bunkers, and firming up of playing surfaces. The club is eschewing flash, instead honoring the simple elegance of Raynor’s design by focusing on the finer details. “Blue Mound is not trying to be something that it is not,” explained Beson-Crone. “Raynor’s engineered contours produce an effect. Being outdoors on this course is a spiritual experience. It just feels right.” With that level of reverence and enthusiasm, the membership is right to be excited for what lies ahead.

Returning to the greens, Beson-Crone’s appreciation has grown with each passing day. “Sometimes I find myself standing in the middle of a green getting lost marveling at what they built,” he said, with a tone of awe in his voice. A sign of their quality reveals itself in the difficulty of choosing either the strongest or the weakest among the set. “I will probably have a new favorite green this year,” laughed Beson-Crone, “and every year.”

Hepner is equally effusive in his praise. “What makes Raynor’s greens so interesting is that they are huge with all these internal contours,” he shared in a presentation to the club. The architect went on to make his case for following through on the expansion work. “The process is to get them out to the precipice, to the edges of these plateaus. Men and horses and mules built these greens and I guarantee that they wanted putting surface on every inch. Otherwise, they wasted a lot of sweat.” With each passing year, the retrovation progresses, reintroducing the variety of hole locations that Raynor intended to keep the course interesting for everyday play.

The Course

The land on which Blue Mound sits is understated, but far from boring. The outward nine loops around the perimeter, culminating with a four hole stretch that interacts with the ridge and slope above the river valley. The inward half meanders around the center, flirting with a tributary creek.

Raynor comes right out of the gate with strong par-4s back-to-back. The two-shot redan 1st plays into an angled and elevated green with a high right side. The 2nd features an enormous double plateau with transition contours as grand as any he ever built. “Macdonald invented the double plateau at National Golf Links,” explained Hepner. “It gives that ‘floating in the air’ feel and forces you to trust your eye. That’s how modern architects get professionals.”

Macdonald’s inspiration for the most polarizing of his ideal three-pars came from Biarritz in France, and its famed Chasm hole.

Although they did not build one of these long par-3s at The National, subsequent designs at Piping Rock, St. Louis Country Club and Lido Club included prominent renditions.

The Biarritz at Piping Rock –Photo credit: Jon Cavalier

Raynor continued to employ the concept at Fisher’s Island, Shoreacres, Camargo, and on the 3rd at Blue Mound. Although the game has become more aerial in nature, creative shotmakers can still enjoy the fun of the low-running approach that the architect intended.

The next stretch of three par-4s works its way over to the river ridge and includes some of the most famous concepts. The Alps 4th recently had a retrovation of the cross bunker by Hepner that fronts a green which he describes as, “…a semi-punchbowl that is subtle, but on which there is a lot of contour.” The 5th is an uphill Road hole with an infinity green angled front-right to back-left. The 6th, named Strategy, presents players with options to position themselves for an optimal approach into the canted and contoured green. “I think this is one of your coolest holes,” Hepner told the members. “It’s patterned after the 1st at National Golf Links.”

The Short hole concept was brought back by Macdonald from the sleeper-fronted original at Brancaster.

Photo Credit: Simon Haines

Golden Age architects such as Ross and MacKenzie, as well as the Dyes in the modern era, shared the belief with Macdonald that at least once in a round, a player should be required to step up and hit a precise shot with a short iron. No bailout. Do or die. National’s version initially donned the Brancaster look, but the wood sleepers were ultimately removed.

Photo Credit: Simon Haines

Raynor had a knack for locating his Shorts in the most scenic spots on the course. With the Mount Mary campus as a backdrop, his setting at Blue Mound was no exception.

An alteration to the front bunkers over the years caused the 7th to lose some of its MacRaynor feel.

Bruce Hepner and the Blue Mound crew excavated the original footprint and returned the moat look, once again providing that all-or-nothing thrill.

Bunker shaping complete, prior to regrassing

Today’s 7th stirs the soul and quickens the pulse, just as Seth Raynor intended.

The front nine turns for home at the Punchbowl 8th, which because of its uphill orientation, has an Alps quality to it. “It is so strong,” mused Hepner. “It’s the coolest green I think I’ve ever expanded.” The par-4 9th plays past a set of string-of-pearls bunkers to a green that falls away hard to the left.

Lest players fret that Raynor peaked too early with the stellar close to the outward half, the 10th quickly signals more greatness to come. “Raynor poached the best ideas from the 2nd and 3rd place winners in the Country Life Magazine design contest that MacKenzie won,” shared Hepner. His “Prize” hole ends with a green that is among the most interesting and unique that he ever built. At the Cape 11th, the architect plays with Macdonald’s concept by angling the elevated green in opposition to the gentle sweep of the fairway. The drive on the Hog’s Back 12th grabs attention, but making a par four requires overcoming the equal challenge of subtle green contours.

“Take a narrow tableland,” wrote Macdonald of the concept he borrowed from North Berwick, “tilt it from right to left, dig a deep bunker on the front side, approach it diagonally, and you have the Redan.” The original was inspired by medieval fortifications…

Photo Credit: North Berwick

…which Macdonald and Raynor morphed to create their first at National Golf Links. In every subsequent design, they made this brilliant three-par a hallmark. It is no mistake that architects continue to follow in their footsteps by building Redans today.

The Redan 4th at NGLA – Photo Credit: Simon Haines

The negative impact of over-treeing is no more acutely evident than in a photo of Blue Mound’s 13th prior to Hepner’s retrovation. The aesthetics and strategy of the hole, suffocating under tree branches, cried out for freedom—a call that the membership and Hepner wisely and mercifully answered.

The Redan 13th now plays as intended. Aerial and ground attacks are both options, but deep bunkers lurk beyond, waiting to ensnare the overzealous.

Every great routing has a rhythm, with ebbs and flows. The stretch from the 14th through the 16th provides a quiet complement between the heart of the course and its closing holes. “14 and the Leven 16th have the opposite strategy,” said Hepner. “They work well together.” In the middle is the par-4 15th, with yet another outstanding green.

The final par-3 takes its name from the Eden estuary that runs behind the green at the original on The Old Course at St. Andrews. The three front bunkers have given players fits for more than a century, including Bobby Jones.

Photo Credit: St. Andrews

Macdonald and Raynor often represented the rear hazard with a long bunker, as was the case with their first rendition at The National.

Photo Credit: Jon Cavalier

Raynor took creative liberties with his design of the front bunkers on Blue Mound’s 17th. They serve the same purpose though—present a strong defense of the canted and contoured green.

With one final nod to The Old Course, Raynor concludes Blue Mound with the Long par-5 18th. The finisher requires three well-struck shots to have a good birdie look to close out a round. The green setting delivers a finishing touch of class, as Hepner explains. “Whoever sited the clubhouse did a great job in relation to the 9th and 18th. It is set at an angle, which enhances the view.” The difference between good and great, details.

Indulge me, for a moment, in the construction of a logical question:

If greens are the most important component of a golf course, and Seth Raynor was among the very best green builders in history, and his finest set of par-3s is at Blue Mound, and the strongest greens at Blue Mound are not on the one-shotters, and it is extremely difficult to identify the weakest green on the course, because they are all strong…Then, does it not stand to reason that Blue Mound is highly underrated among the Golden Age greats?

Perhaps my leaps of logic are too broad to accept, but this much is true—the club membership has a newfound zeal for polishing their hidden gem, and they have charged Hepner and Beson-Crone with recapturing all of its upside potential. Wherever one might have rated the course in the past, a return trip to Seth Raynor’s Blue Mound is sure to be cause for serious reconsideration.

An in-depth look at the evolution of the C.B. Macdonald-designed and Gil Hanse retrovated Sleepy Hollow Country Club

“From the listless repose of the place, and the peculiar character of its inhabitants, who are descendants from the original Dutch settlers, this sequestered glen has long been known by the name of Sleepy Hollow…A drowsy, dreamy influence seems to hang over the land, and to pervade the very atmosphere.”

— Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Perhaps there was a time when the public’s consciousness of C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor’s work at Sleepy Hollow Country Club fit this description from Irving’s classic tale. With a retrovation of the course led by Gil Hanse now largely complete, players and architecture enthusiasts are fully awake to its greatness. In The Legend, suitors Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones vie for the heart and soul of Katrina Van Tassel, climaxing in a ghostly confrontation at a crossroads in the woods. That story foreshadows the challenge Hanse, consultant George Bahto and the club’s leadership would ultimately have to face. Standing at a crossroads, haunted by ghosts of architects past, which path would they take? By committing to recapturing the heart and soul of Macdonald’s Sleepy Hollow, they laid those ghosts to rest in a fashion that can best be described as legendary.

The Evolution of a Design Philosophy

By all accounts, Charles Blair Macdonald was a man of both feisty temperament and erudition. He was worldly and his wide-ranging interests included commerce, art, sport and architecture. Through his studies, he became aware of the work and writings of Humphry Repton, who was influential in Britain around the turn of the 19th century, coining the term “landscape gardener”. As Macdonald would later be considered the father of American golf course architecture, Repton’s publishing of The Art of Landscape Gardening in 1797 conferred upon him similar patriarchal status in his field. A passage in the book was particularly resonant with Macdonald and would send him down a path of evolution toward his distinct brand of design: “I can only plead that true taste in every art consists more of adapting tried expedients to peculiar circumstances than in the inordinate thirst after novelty, the characteristic of uncultivated minds, which from facility of inventing wild theories, without experience, are apt to suppose that taste is displayed by novelty, genius by innovation, and that every change must necessarily tend to improvements.”

Perhaps a respect for the traditions of the game and its playing fields came from time spent with Old Tom Morris in St. Andrews, but even while pushing the craft forward, Macdonald retained a connection to the unequivocal greatness of the old links. He did not believe that new and different necessarily equated to better in creative pursuits.

George Bahto, wrote the book on C.B. Macdonald, literally. In assembling his compendium of Macdonald’s life and work, The Evangelist of Golf, Bahto and his collaborator Gib Papazian illuminated the progression from a restless dissatisfaction with the quality of America’s courses to the creation of the ideal golf course at National Golf Links of America.

Another writer, Horace Hutchinson, built on the intellectual momentum of Repton when he published articles in Golf Illustrated in 1901 exploring the best and hardest holes of that time. Macdonald was affected by the articles’ premise. “These discussions certainly caught the attention of Charlie Macdonald,” wrote Bahto. “Why shouldn’t America have golf equal to that in the British Isles? In his mind, the content of the article was the definitive listing of those holes reverenced by the world’s greatest players. If America was to have golf that compared to that in Britain, its courses must be based on the same timeless genius as those across the Atlantic.”

From 1902-1906, a series of voyages back across the Atlantic ensued. With an assist from Devereux Emmet, a study was made of the greatest holes of the British Isles with the original intention of replicating them on American soil. “Now why should not one try to absorb that sanctified tradition of each hole by copying its features in another climate where in time tradition might sanctify its existence,” wrote Macdonald “The flowers of transplanted plants in time shed a perfume comparable to that of their indigenous home.” The plan to transplant holes morphed into a distillation of the strategy and features that could be drawn upon to create new courses. Bahto described that shift of focus, “It became clear to Macdonald that his original concept of topographic duplication was not as relevant to the quality of the course as the individual strategic elements.”

The land on which The National was built was optimal for Macdonald’s first experiment with his ideal concepts approach to design. It shared characteristics with traditional linksland—unforested, with topographical movement that was interesting, rather than severe. The project also fortuitously connected Macdonald with Seth Raynor. The combination of the former’s ideas with the latter’s surveying and engineering brilliance, applied to that land, resulted in a masterpiece. But what about more “peculiar circumstances”, as Repton put it? Would the approach hold up on wilder terrain? The duo’s next three projects at Piping Rock, St. Louis Country Club and Sleepy Hollow, which opened for play in 1914, proved that the ideal concepts could be applied to great effect on any site.

The original course explored the slope, the ridge and the valley, with the greater portion on the clubhouse side. Although the routing stayed mostly close to home, there was an adventurous spirit to the manner in which Macdonald and Raynor laid their ideal holes out on the dramatic landforms. Their creation was well received, but it would not take long for the course at Sleepy Hollow to begin evolving away from this starting point.

Calling in the Cleaner

How did a man who was a dry cleaner by trade become the foremost authority on the work of one of the Golden Age masters? Serendipity, or rub-of-the-green, had a strong hand in George Bahto’s story. He took up golf as an adult in New Jersey and found himself drawn to courses with bold features. Curiosity about the who, how and why behind his favorite holes and courses led him to the discovery of Charles Banks. Research on the protege Banks uncovered the mentor Seth Raynor, which subsequently brought him to Charles Blair Macdonald. The men’s creative approach fascinated Bahto, and down the rabbit hole he went, resulting in an avocation as a golf architecture historian.

Bahto connected with Gil Hanse, who got him involved in his first construction project at Stonebridge Golf Links, a course that drew some design inspiration from the philosophy of Raynor. It would not be his last. In writing The Evangelist of Golf, George Bahto enlightened the world on the value of C.B. Macdonald’s approach to design. He cleaned up Macdonald’s image, and the thinking of many club Green Committees who had been directly or indirectly degrading his courses for decades. It should therefore come as no surprise that some of those clubs would turn to Bahto for counsel, including Sleepy Hollow, which brought him on as a consultant.

It is worth noting that in all of Bahto’s writing about Charles Blair Macdonald, one word is conspicuously absent. That word is “template”, which has become shorthand when referring to the holes Macdonald, Raynor, Banks and others created using the ideal concepts. Unfortunately, the term carries with it the potential for an intellectually lazy inference that Macdonald and Raynor’s design process was somehow akin to dumping out a bag of cookie cutters and arranging them willy nilly across the landscape. The strength of each of the holes at Sleepy Hollow, with their strategically placed hazards and wondrously varied greens, is evidence that any downgrade to the ideal concepts approach as involving shortcuts is entirely off-base. The application of timeless and proven design elements to a unique landscape is more demanding because the architect is choosing to adhere to a constraint. There is no bailout, and no acceptance of inclusion of weak holes on a course. Bringing the course back up to Macdonald’s higher standard, and his constraints, was the challenge that would occupy Gil Hanse and his team for more than a decade.

The Retrovation

By the time that Gil Hanse found himself standing at a design crossroads with George Bahto at Sleepy Hollow, he had already traveled a long road to gain an understanding and appreciation for the architectural roots that gave rise to America’s Golden Age. He followed in Macdonald’s footsteps by taking an extended study trip to the British Isles, returning to initially work for Tom Doak before venturing out on his own. In 2003, as Hanse Golf Design was beginning to gain momentum, Hanse contributed an essay entitled “Stop Making Sense!” to Paul Daley’s Golf Architecture: A Worldwide Perspective in which he shared a point of view that at first glance seems discordant with respect for Macdonald’s philosophy.

“The use of natural landforms to create interesting and creative golf holes should not be held to any formulas,” wrote Hanse. “If a rule must be stated, it should be that no rules apply to the use of a landscape to create playing grounds for golf. The golf course architect should be creative in utilizing natural features to dictate the strategy of the course. Inherent in the unique character of every site are unique golf holes just waiting to be discovered. Is this not the true challenge of golf course architecture, to build fresh and innovative holes that derive their beauty, playability, and interest from their natural surrounds?”

Repton might have raised an eyebrow reading those words. There are certainly times when exercising one’s creative license courageously involves blazing a new trail. Making the choice to honor tradition is not mutually exclusive with creative freedom by default though. As it turned out, Hanse’s focus on working from the ground up, coupled with his reverence for the Golden Age, was exactly the remedy needed to cure Sleepy Hollow’s ills. Over the years since Raynor completed the original eighteen, the course had changed considerably. New holes were created by Tillinghast and others when land was sold and the club expanded to 27 holes.

The expanded 27-hole routing after Tillinghast’s addition

More recently, other architects and green committees without the benefit of Bahto’s knowledge of Macdonald made further modifications that altered hole strategies and aesthetics for the worse. The initial wave of retrovation focused on consistency of style, primarily of the bunkering, prioritizing the Tillinghast holes. Those phase one changes having been well received, Hanse and the club’s leadership decided to fully embrace Macdonald’s ideal concepts. This decision was momentous at two levels. First, they were removing the work of A.W. Tillinghast in the Westchester neighborhood where he reigns supreme. Second, they were choosing to accept Macdonald’s standard for greatness. They were all in.

“Deciding to remove the work of Golden Age architects, especially one as prolific as Tillinghast, is always a difficult choice,” explained Hanse’s associate Ben Hillard, who worked extensively on the Sleepy Hollow retrovation. “If you consider golf architecture in Westchester County, Macdonald & Raynor have one course and Tillinghast has a handful, including a couple of masterpieces. With the bulk of the holes to be restored/renovated being Macdonald & Raynor, a more cohesive course could be made by taking the Tillinghast holes and replacing them with holes like ‘Road’, ‘Knoll’ and ‘Double Plateau’, some of which had been lost when the club sold land to the North side of the property in the late 1920s.”

It would not be enough to simply add those features and holes back into the mix, however. They had to do so in a manner that would fit the land as well as if the Macdonald and Raynor had done it themselves. In being attuned to the landscape at such a high level, Hanse was able to channel the true genius of Macdonald’s ideal concepts. The Leven 1st, Road 8th and others are new, but could easily be mistaken for originals. The remaining holes were brought even further into line with the ideals. The following montage of the Short 16th illustrates the extent of the transformation over time.

The original short – Credit: Simon Haines

Before the retrovation began, with misfit bunkering – Credit: GolfClubAtlas

After phase one of the retrovation with trees removed, bunkering and green partially restored

Excavation of the tee and green surface begins – Credit: Ben Hillard

Restoring the thumbprint – Credit: Ben Hillard

Grassing the newly shaped putting surface – Credit: Ben Hillard

Gil taking in the finished product – Credit: Ben Hillard

Bunker and thumbprint fully retrovated

A place where magical moments happen at Sleepy Hollow

Like Macdonald and Raynor, George Bahto would sadly not be alive to see this current, magnificent iteration of the course that began a century ago. The spirit of all three men and their ideals can be found in the completed work of Hanse and Hillard, and one can safely surmise that generous praise and approval would be forthcoming.

The Course

“…there is a little valley or rather lap of land among high hills, which is one of the quietest places in the whole world. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a quail or tapping of a woodpecker is almost the only sound that ever breaks in upon the uniform tranquillity.”

― Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Click on any gallery image to enlarge with captions

The club takes its name from the Pocantico River valley in which it sits. The Dutch name for that river was Slapershaven, or “sleepy harbor”. Although it might have accurately described their maritime activities, “sleepy” is not an adjective that applies to the land the course traverses.

Arriving at the grand front gate, visitors are immediately aware that an awe-inspiring experience awaits. The drive up to the mansion that now serves as the clubhouse provides tantalizing glimpses of golf holes arrayed across the hillside. After a warm welcome from staff and members alike, players walk onto a porch with stunning views of the Hudson River and Palisades of New Jersey beyond. Before striking the first shot of the day, the spirit is already soaring.

The first two holes bring players up the western side of the ridge that serves as the anchor feature in the routing. The 3rd through 15th explore the terrain high and low on the eastern side. The iconic 16th returns players to the top of the ridge, from which the final two holes return home. A loop around Sleepy Hollow has a literary quality that would make Irving proud. The story builds in a broad arc toward climax, interspersed with moments both dramatic and quietly sublime.

The Hanse retrovation unified Sleepy Hollow, and Superintendent Tom Leahy and his team continue to refine and present it beautifully. It is a highly cohesive golf course comprised of eighteen holes, each worthy of study and appreciation. To allow for an examination at depth, the tour that follows includes original sketches by Gil Hanse (@Gil_Hanse), the artwork of Tom Young (@BallparkBlueprints), the photography of Jon Cavalier (@LinksGems) and commentary from Ben Hillard (@Ben.Hillard). Playing the course has a wonderfully transportative effect—we invite you to get similarly carried away as you read on.

HOLE #1 “Leven” – 418 yards – par 4

The 1st is finally a worthy start to this golf course. Gil Hanse knocked down trees and opened better views, and turned a flat, boring green into a wild one. Though it doesn’t get the publicity that some of the other holes do, this is low-key one of the most improved holes on the course. “This hole was not in either of the first two renditions of the golf course and was built at some point in the 1930s,” explained Hillard. “We transformed it into a Leven by introducing a whole new strategy to the hole. Golfers are encouraged to play towards or past a big bunker on the left edge of the fairway to provide the best angle into the green which is protected by a mound short right.”

HOLE #2 “Climbing” – 372 yards – par 4

The short par-4 second is a transition hole—it’s main purpose is simply to take a player from the bottom part of the course to the upper shelf. These kinds of uphill transition holes are usually rather boring, but this is one of the better versions of its kind, thanks to an exciting green sloping hard back-to-front and a deep bunker front right. This is a birdie opportunity, but it’s also a hole that can bite the careless player. We speak from experience when we say that you can be on this green in two, in the front bunker in three and walking off with a triple before you know what happened.

HOLE #3 “Eden” – 172 yards – par 3

The 3rd is the first of Sleepy’s brilliant foursome of par-3s, and maybe the best of the bunch. With a panoramic view of the Hudson at your back, you play over the ravine to a huge, sloping green protected in front by a deep Strath bunker. Hanse’s restoration of this green opened up an infinite number of outstanding hole locations, and it’s not uncommon to have a putt that breaks more than 10 feet.“The green for the third hole originally played as a blind ‘Alps’ from somewhere near the current 5th tee area,” recounted Hillard. “This can be seen in the earliest plans of the course. At some point the hole changed to being the mid-length par-3. Although called an Eden it lacked the proper characteristics. The decision was made to build an entirely new green and bunkers for the hole—only the very deep bunker on the right hand side of the green was original.”

HOLE #4 “Headless Horseman” – 415 yards – par 4

Be sure to take in the view of the famous 16th and the river behind and check the pin location on the blind Punchbowl 15th, then try to avoid the fairway bunker up the right. Long tee shots will clear the ridge and offer a view of the skinny, deep green, which was expanded by Hanse’s crew. The connected complexes and shared bunkers of the 4th and 14th are a personal favorite.

HOLE #5 “Panorama” – 435 yards – par 4

Another strong par-4 on the front side, and a LinksGems favorite. The tee shot over the hill is completely blind, and players need to stay to the right to avoid rolling out into the rough on the left. Cresting the hill in the rolling fairway is one of the great visual reveals in all of golf, and the uphill approach to this infinity green is among the most exciting shots on the course. The putting surface has been significantly expanded to the right and the views from this spot are some of the best on the property.